Separation
by countertiger-x
Summary: Chapter 17 Up!AU fic. The Elders never let Piper and Leo get married...so when Piper ends up pregnant, they have to give their daughter away.UPDATE 10-4!Please R&R! Chapter 17 Up!
1. The News

Summary: This is an A/U fic. What if the Elders never let Piper and Leo get married? What if they forbid them from having any kind of relationship? And they followed the rules, except that Piper still got pregnant. So what if their daughter had the exact same story Paige had? Piper and Leo had to give their powerful daughter away to another family...and they were never the same...  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own the show or any of the characters, except for some that you don't recognize.  
  
Please R&R!!!!  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Back to Episode 3.11 (Blinded by the Whitelighter)....  
  
Piper stood at the bar counter, looking around for any sign of Leo. Negative thoughts raced through her mind as she mixed drinks for customers. 'What if the elders punished him? What if we can't be together anymore....'  
  
Her thoughts were interrupted by a sudden tap on her shoulder. She jumped at the sudden touch. She whirled around to see her older sister's worried face. "Prue? What's wrong? Is Leo here?"  
  
Prue looked down at her shoes and then back up to Piper. "Yeah, he wants to talk to you. He.....doesn't look very happy." She mumbled, laying her hand on Piper's shoulder. Piper's face fell; her hopes for good news withered away. She quickly nodded, anxious to hear the news that Leo had brought.  
  
She put down the mixture of liquids she was about to give to the man on her right, and rushed through the crowds of people. Prue suddenly grabbed her by her shoulder and turned her around. "Look, honey. If it's bad, just know, that we're always gonna be here for you." She practically yelled, since the noise from the band and the customers combined were deafening their ears. But even from the yell, Piper could tell that Prue was definitely worried about her.  
  
Piper gave a huge exhale, and nodded again. She paused for a moment, knowing that if things could be this bad, she didn't even want to face Leo. But she got all her strength together, and walked through the rest of the people that were blocking her boyfriend and her from seeing each other.  
  
She finally got to their little couch in the back of the club and saw Leo talking to her younger sister, Phoebe.  
  
"Leo." Piper muttered. He turned up to Piper with his hypnotizing blue eyes and he looked as if he were about to cry. He got up from his seat and walked over to her and kissed her on the lips. Piper could tell something was wrong but she didn't know that things couldn't get worse.  
  
She pulled away from him and stared at him. "Leo, what did they say?" she asked, her voice breaking down into tears. He looked at her sympathetically and looked to Prue and Phoebe. Prue and Phoebe also had an anxious look that said "What the hell happened?" Leo gave a big sigh and Piper could tell that he didn't want to tell her.  
  
"Leo, please. What happened? What did they say?"  
  
Leo turned away and sat back down on the couch, burying his head into his arms, breaking into a sob. Piper sighed and silent tears came down her cheeks. She walked over to Leo and hugged him tightly and whispered into his ears.  
  
"I take it that it wasn't good news."  
  
Leo looked up at her, his tear stained face was looking at Piper. "The Elders were....mad. They said that we broke too many rules this time. We can't....." Leo couldn't finish his sentence. Prue suddenly stood up to argue.  
  
"WHAT? Leo, we saved their fucking lives up there! We had to break the rules! It is our job to destroy evil in any way that we can!" she screamed. Phoebe nodded in agreement. Leo shrugged. "I don't know. They said that they couldn't take anymore rule breaking and they said that getting married would make it worse. They have officially forbidden it from ever taking place."  
  
"So what? You two can get married anyway! Break the stupid rules! Who cares?" Phoebe exclaimed. Leo shook his head. "No. Now they are keeping strict surveillance over us. If we got married, they would re assign me and forbid me from ever seeing Piper again. They are thinking of reassigning me right now."  
  
Piper finally broke down into a cry. "Leo....they can't reassign you. I can't even think of living without you." She cried, burying her face into Leo's shoulder. Leo stroked her hair and kissed her on the head. "I know baby...I know." He whispered. His tears dropped onto Piper's hair as he cried.  
  
"Leo, take us up there. We'll argue for months if we have to! You two are going to get married! They shouldn't get in the way of your love." Prue said. But Piper looked up at Prue and shook her head.  
  
"No. It's going to make it worse. If we actually do that, then the Elders would reassign Leo for sure, and then I don't know what I would do. And even if I did marry Leo in secret, then we would be living our lives in fear that the Elders would come and separate us anyway."  
  
"But Leo even said that if you two got married, then they couldn't break you two up because you two would have a holy bonding."  
  
Leo turned away. "They said that they would stop at nothing to break us apart if we got married. Even if we do have a holy bonding, it wouldn't make a difference to them anymore. They could actually condemn me to death now that we have disobeyed them over and over. It wouldn't be right. They are the Elders. They can do whatever they need to do."  
  
Phoebe and Prue sighed, now that there was nothing that they could do. They glanced over to Piper, who was now crying even more. Piper and Leo held each other, and wished that the moment could last forever.  
  
****  
  
2 years later  
  
(Prue has died already. Paige has already come to take her place. Leo has been reassigned, but still sees Piper, breaking the rules to see her. The Elders know nothing about their meetings, but even so, Piper and Leo never got married, still living in fear on what the Elders would do to them. But then Piper turns up pregnant, and they manage to keep it a secret from the Elders, but when their daughter is born, they do the only thing they can do.....)  
  
Piper held her newborn daughter in her arms as she lay in bed. Leo stood next to her, stroking her hair, showering her with kisses. Paige and Phoebe sit on the sides, watching their sister and their niece and their whitelighter.  
  
"She is so beautiful." Piper said, admiring her new daughter. She broke into tears as she looked at her. She handed her to Leo and Leo took her into his arms. He sighed as he stared at the new life in front of him. "Hi. I'm your Dad....And that's your mother over there." He said, looking down at his daughter.  
  
"I never want to let her go. I never want to let you go." He whispered. He rocked the baby back and forth, and the baby was sleeping silently, not making a cry. Leo's tears slipped down his cheeks as he watched his daughter's slumber.  
  
"I don't either." Piper suddenly said. Leo turned around to look at her. Piper was crying, hard. She never wanted to give her daughter away, but there was no choice. The Elders would find out, and they could kill Leo. They wanted their daughter to be safe, to live a better life than what they could give her.  
  
Phoebe and Paige walked to Piper and sat with her on her bed. They comforted her and hugged her. It barely helped though. Piper couldn't help but cry over the loss she was about to have. "We have to. The Elders will find out. We...have to." She said through her tears.  
  
Leo nodded and looked at his daughter in his arms again.  
  
"I'm sorry baby. I am so sorry."  
  
****  
  
Piper and Leo held the car seat that held their two-day-old daughter in it. They stood, in the church, in front of the nun. "Please, give her a good home." Leo whispered to the nun. The nun nodded.  
  
Piper set the car seat down and looked at the baby inside. She took the baby out and held her. "I love you always. I love you so much." She said, clutching to the bundle tight, kissing the baby on the head. She cried as she rocked back and forth. The baby's eyes were open, looking at her mother.  
  
Leo took her into his arms and smiled at her. "Hey baby.." he whispered to his daughter. He didn't want to let go. Piper didn't want to let go. But it was the only way. The baby looked up at her father. Leo could hear the Elders calling him, but ignored it. He needed this moment, this one last moment with her.  
  
Phoebe took the baby into her arms and Paige stood behind her. "We have to say goodbye to you so fast I'm going to miss being an aunt." She whispered. "Yeah, me too." Paige said. Phoebe handed the baby back to Piper.  
  
"I love you. I will always love you." She said, as she put the baby back into the car seat. Leo kneeled down to look at the car seat one last time. "I'll see you again. I promise." He whispered and then stood up. He handed the car seat the nurse and the baby started crying. It was as if she knew that she would be leaving her parents.  
  
Piper wanted to go and hold the baby so it would stop crying but Leo held her back. Piper started crying and turned away to cry on Leo shoulder. Leo held Piper tight and shut his eyes so that he wouldn't cry. It didn't work. Piper and Leo gathered up the strength to walk out of the church in silence.  
  
Piper wanted to look back and see her daughter being carried away by the nun, but realized that if she did, she would never be able to let go.  
  
A/N: The fic will continue. Please Read and Review!! And tell me what you think so far..I'll probably update later so blah! Ok enough reading now review!!! 


	2. Giving Her Up

A/N: Thanks for the reviews. They mean a lot.  
  
Leo walked Piper into the manor. Piper was silent the whole trip back. She didn't want to speak at all. Leo tried to make her feel better, but it didn't work. Nothing would make Piper feel better, and nothing ever will. They just gave up their daughter, the daughter they were supposed to take care of, the daughter that she saw in the future, their daughter.  
  
Things would never be the same.  
  
Leo watched Piper run into the house and up the stairs. He was about to go after her, when he heard the loud slamming of the door. Phoebe pulled him back and shook her head.  
  
"She needs some time alone Leo. It's really hard giving up your only child, knowing that you'll never see it again, knowing that you'll never get to know her."  
  
"Yeah. I know." He said, turning away from them. Paige went up to him and hugged him, tightly. Leo wrapped his arms around the sister, and silent tears started to come down his cheeks. "It's going to be ok Leo. Just, we'll find a way...." She tried to make him feel better, but no right words for the situation seemed to come out.  
  
He let go of the embrace. "Tell Piper, that I had to go to work."  
  
"The Elders calling you?" Phoebe asked.  
  
Leo slowly nodded and gave one last look to the girls, as he orbed out in shimmering blue and white lights. Paige was about to run up the stairs to go see Piper but Phoebe pulled her back. "Paige. She needs time alone."  
  
Paige paused, and finally nodded her head in agreement, as the two sisters walked towards the kitchen.  
  
****  
  
Leo orbed to the church. He couldn't let the girls know about his plan, what he was about to do. The truth was that the Elders never called him. He was about to do this on his own. He walked to the back of the church, his footsteps echoing behind him from the empty sanctuary.  
  
He finally got to the back room, where he saw the nun trying to hush the crying of the baby girl in the same car seat where he and Piper had left her. He smiled as he saw the sight of the baby. The nun looked up from her doings, and smiled.  
  
"Leo, I was thinking that you would never come."  
  
"I'm sorry sister, I had to bring Piper and the girls home, I can't let them know about this."  
  
The nun nodded and gave hand signals motioning for him to come to her. He walked towards her and the car seat and when he finally got there, he looked at the bundle. There was a crying, baby girl, his baby girl, and a big grin spread across his face.  
  
"I missed you." He whispered, as he picked the baby up and held her in his arms. The baby stopped crying and her eyes looked up at her father. Leo bent his head down to kiss her little forehead. He rocked her around, singing a little tune, walking in circles.  
  
The baby's eyes slowly started to close, as the lullaby soothed her. Finally, the sweet little girl was asleep. Leo smiled at his doing. He was a real father now, and he actually put his baby to sleep. He looked up at the nun. She was smiling right at him.  
  
"They will be here any moment."  
  
"Did you tell them about my....daughter?" Leo hesitated. The nun shook her head. "No. I just told him that a friend needed his assistance."  
  
"Thank you, so much for doing this sister. I..can't thank you enough. You've done so much."  
  
"Well, it's what I do. I help whitelighters. After what you did to help me so many times Leo, I couldn't begin to repay you enough."  
  
"I'm lucky to have you as a friend." Leo said, looking down back at the slumbering baby. He took a free hand and played with her tiny little fingers. Suddenly, a pair of blue and white swirling lights came into the room. The nun and Leo looked up at the sight. Then, a man and woman appeared from the lights.  
  
The man and the woman looked around. When the man saw Leo, he grinned. "Leo!! Old friend, how are you?"  
  
Leo took his free hand and shook the man's hand. "Artemis, it's been a long time. I've been good. And who's this?" he said, referring to the woman beside him. Artemis looked to the back of him and saw the woman. "Oh sorry. Allow me to introduce my lifetime whitelighter partner, Apolla."  
  
Leo smiled. He had been friends with Artemis for the longest time. Artemis had taught him a lot of whitelighter techniques and he even helped him with his first charge. Artemis was sort of like an old time mentor.  
  
"They gave you a partner?"  
  
"Yeah, I never really asked for one. Sheesh, those Elders up there. Sometimes I think they're a little too old in the head for the job." He said sarcastically. Apolla hit him on the shoulder. "Shush. They might hear you an blame ME for it."  
  
Artemis suddenly noticed the baby in Leo's arms. "Leo, whose baby is that? Why did you call me here anyway?"  
  
Leo looked down at his darling daughter and gave her to the nun, where the nun put her back down into the car seat. "I need a favor Artemis, and I know that you're the only one I can count on to do it and to keep it secret. You have ways of getting pass the Elders, that I have no knowledge of."  
  
"What, kind of favor?" he asked suspiciously, Apolla coming up to his side and wondering the same thing. Leo sighed.  
  
"Artemis, I fell in love, with one of my charges. A Charmed one."  
  
"You what?? Leo, out of all the people, you, fell in love??? I knew that your feelings would get in the way, I mean...."  
  
"Artemis. Please, if anybody knew more about love and emotions, it would be you. You were always different than other whitelighters, I didn't really understand, until I met Piper."  
  
"Yes, I heard about this Piper. I didn't know that you actually fell in love..."  
  
"The Elders didn't approve at all. At first, they put me on probation.or something like that. Until this one time came, where we actually went up there, to defeat a warlock and we broke one too many rules. They forbidden me from ever marrying her, they forbid me from being they're whitelighter ever again. But...I broke the rules once more, and I kept seeing her. I couldn't....stay away from her Artemis.."  
  
"I'm listening, what else happened?"  
  
"I loved her more than anything, and we managed to see each other without the Elders knowing, until....Piper got pregnant."  
  
"WHAT???"  
  
"We had a beautiful baby girl...but we can't keep her. And I do not want her staying with a normal family, she has too many powers Artemis. Mortals can't protect her from danger, and I know that you're the only one who can take care of my little girl...without letting the Elders know."  
  
"Leo, I can't. That's just, I mean.."  
  
"Please Artemis. You have been my best friends since forever. I would feel so much better if you were taking care of her. And..you could protect her from danger. I just need this favor..Please." Leo looked at Artemis with sympathetic eyes.  
  
Artemis stared at his friend. Both negative and positive thoughts raced through his mind. He was about to speak, when Apolla stopped him. "Yes Leo. We'll do it. We'll take care of the girl." She said, in a calm, soothing voice.  
  
Leo smiled and glanced at Artemis' shocked look. "Artemis?" he asked.  
  
Artemis looked nervous, and then scared, and started to bite his nails. He looked over to the baby in the car seat and smiled when he saw the sweet face. He looked over to his friend, who was asking him for help. "Yes. We'll do it. Of course we'll do it, would I ever turn down an offer like this?"  
  
Leo grinned. "Thank you. Thank you so much. You are truly the definition of guardian angels. I can't thank you enough."  
  
"Save the talk Leo. We better hurry."  
  
Leo nodded and walked over to his daughter. He stared at her for a few minutes, wondering how life would be without her. He didn't want to be separated from her but it was for her protection. "I love you.....and I'll see you again. I promise." He whispered as he kissed her face once again.  
  
He lifted the car seat and handed it over to Artemis. Artemis and Apolla stared at the baby. "Oh Artemis, she's so beautiful." Apolla gasped, her hand over her mouth. Artemis smiled at the young one. "I'm sure she'll look just like you..." He said, looking up to Leo.  
  
Leo had tears falling down his cheeks. "Take care of her. Please." He said, his voice cracking from his cry. "Just, I love her so much. Piper loves her...and thank you..." He tried to say. Artemis let Apolla hold the car seat and he walked to Leo and hugged him tightly.  
  
"I know how tough this feels. I had to leave my son when I died..I never got to see him since. I promise my soul that I will protect your daughter until I die." He said in Leo's ear. Leo nodded and pulled away from the embrace.  
  
Artemis went back to Apolla and held the car seat. He looked back at Leo before they began to walk out of the room. Suddenly, Apolla turned around to look at Leo. "What's her name?"  
  
Leo smiled at the question. "Samantha. Samantha, Halliwell, Wyatt." He whispered, as the final tears came down his cheeks, and he orbed out swirling blue and white lights, out of the church.  
  
A/N: Well, I should continue real soon, but this is the only things I can write so far....geez do the hours go fast. .*dramaqueen*, yes, I thought of that too, but then I have my own little theory about whitelighters. See, they are angels, and they can't die from regular wounds and such, but they are dead people that come back to life as guardian angels, so they can kind of die. They do die by whitelighter poison right? So that means that the elders CAN kill him if they have to. Thanks for reviewing my fic. More later. Please read and review! 


	3. Time Passes By

Piper stared at the light brown rim that coffee stained onto her mug. It was hopeless to do anything now. She couldn't get how anything worked anymore. First she lost Leo, then Prue, and she had to lose her daughter. Her little girl.  
  
It hurt too much. It hurt too much to think about it, it hurt to much to breathe. It was hard to live, knowing that she gave her only daughter away. It wasn't fair. It was never fair. She was losing everyone that she loved. Who was next? Paige? Phoebe?  
  
She couldn't take anymore. She didn't want to take anymore. Why did she do all this shit for the Elders and for good if they didn't do much for her. No, she wasn't being selfish. Selfish people don't lose their only children because of a bunch of old people in the clouds. She loved her, even if she was only 2 days old. That little baby brought her pride and joy. Nobody could ever bring that. Nobody.  
  
'But it was for her own good. You can't blame yourself. You can't blame others. You were protecting her.' The thoughts in her mind told her. If she was protecting her, then why did she feel like shit inside.  
  
Suddenly, she heard footsteps approaching the kitchen, and then a light tap on her shoulder. She didn't want to turn around. She didn't want to look up. She just kept her eyes fixed on the dark blue coffee mug in front of her. Her arms were crossed, and her legs were spread out.  
  
"Piper, please."  
  
Phoebe's voice rang in her ears. She dared to look up at her face. Phoebe's eyes were sympathetic towards her. Phoebe tried to give her a little smile to cheer her up, but it didn't work. Piper gave a big exhale and straightened up in her chair.  
  
"What."  
  
"Honey," Phoebe said, and started to rub Piper's back lightly. "It's going to be ok.."  
  
"Nothing will ever be ok. Never."  
  
"Piper, you're going to have to learn that this was for her own good."  
  
"I'll never get to see her again."  
  
"She's in a good home."  
  
"I'll never get to see her grow up."  
  
"She'll have wonderful, normal foster parents."  
  
"I'll never get to see her first smile, her first word, her first step."  
  
"She'll be out of danger."  
  
"I miss her." Piper finally mumbled, before breaking into a sob. She could taste the salty tears seeping into her mouth. Phoebe went over to her and hugged her tight. Piper couldn't stop crying. She didn't know if the tears would ever stop. Phoebe kept the embrace.  
  
"I want to hold her in my arms. Phoebe, you have no idea what it felt like, to hold that baby in my arms. I felt nothing like it, and it kills me that I'll never ever be able to have that feeling ever again. It hurts so much."  
  
"You're lucky you even got to have that feeling. I never even got to hold my kid. I lost him to evil."  
  
A thought ran through Piper's mind.  
  
"And I lost mine to good."  
  
~*~*~*~*~14 years later*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Samantha Fielding stared at the second hand smoke rising in front of her face. She looked down from her second story window. Kids were playing in the next yard, and they were having fun. She glanced back to the cigarette in her hand, puffed one last puff and put the cigarette out in the ashtray next to her on the windowsill she was leaning against.  
  
Why did she feel so incomplete? It was times like these that got her smoking. That and it was what the cool kids did. Yeah, that's right. Smoking just seemed to take away her troubles. Uncle Art and Aunt Pam didn't understand. Maybe it was the fact that she knew nothing about her biological parents or didn't know what they looked like at all.  
  
She just felt like there was some big hole in her heart that she needed to replace quickly before she had a nervous meltdown. Maybe it was the fact that she was so different from other kids. Weird de ja vu things happened around her. Sam the freak. Yeah, that was her.  
  
And it's not like she could tell her aunt and uncle that she had weird feelings and instincts about certain things. Every time she sensed something was wrong about someone or that something was going to happen, it came true. Sometimes they didn't, but the majority of the times, it did. It scared her to death. It scared the kids at school and other people to death. Everything was so weird to her. She needed answers. She needed them quick.  
  
She heard a light knock on her door. 'Crap, I smell like smoke.' Was the first thought that came into her head. She grabbed the air freshener next to her and sprayed it all over the room. She quickly shut the window and closed the curtains. She grabbed the book on her desk and opened it quickly and jumped on her bed.  
  
"COME IN!!!" she screamed, glancing nervously at the door. The door opened, and she saw a middle aged guy, with a mix of gray and black on his head, and his glasses slipping down his nose. "Hey honey. Breakfast is served."  
  
Sam smiled at her uncle. He was the sweetest guy in the whole world and she treated him as if he were her dad, or grandpa. "Ok, Uncle Art. I'll be down in a second." She said. He smiled at her and closed the door. She gave a sigh of relief, knowing that he didn't suspect one thing wrong.  
  
Suddenly, he burst through the door again. She quickly looked up at him. He stuck his head out the door. "Oh, and just to let you know, you're reading your book upside down, so if you were doing something that you know you SHOULDN'T be doing, then I suggest you don't do it again if you don't want to be grounded for the next MONTH." He said, putting emphasis on many of his words.  
  
She rolled her eyes and sank down onto her bed. She laid the upside down book onto her eyes and regretted for ever doubting that her uncle would find about her doings. "Yeah, ok." She mumbled from her book.  
  
Sure, her uncle and aunt were the coolest in the world, but she always got caught. She didn't know how they always found out, but it always happened. They were always watching over her. Although when she brings up the subject of her parents they always clear their throat and change the subject and ignore her for the next few hours until she forgot all about it.  
  
It was weird, as if they were her guardian angels or something. She laughed at herself. Yeah, angels.  
  
A/N: I know that this part didn't make any sense. Please forgive me!! This is all I can get through tonight but I'll put more tomorrow I promise!! Please review? I love reviews..they are what get me up in the morning besides the usual Folgers boiling. BTW what the heck happened to Folgers? I never see their commercial anymore which is a shame because I love their tune. "The best part of waking up is Folgers in yourr cupppppp!!" Love that. Ok, I'm done. Hehehehe. Did they go bankrupt or something? Sorry, said I would stop but I'm still rambling!! That reminds me of the time when.... 


	4. All Grown Up

A/N: Okay people, I really, really appreciate reviews ok? I really want reviews from people! So if you read this and don't leave a review, you're a criminal! A pure crook! I'm kidding...geez, you guys take things so seriously. On to the show!  
  
---------  
  
It's been years since Leo had every laid eyes on her. But every now and then, he caught a glance at the beautiful young girl, with the chestnut brown hair, and the dark brown eyes. She resembled so much of her mother, and her father.  
  
It seemed like just yesterday, she was a little baby who was starting to learn how to walk. Now, she was all grown up. Fourteen years is a long time, but at the same time, it seemed like time has gone by so quickly. Leo glanced through the window of the nice, suburban two-story house.  
  
Artemis had not changed one bit. Being a whitelighter had its advantages. You never looked older. You looked as young and healthy as you did the day you died, unless you clipped your wings perhaps. But Artemis? Still the same young soul, and handsome man Leo had known over 50 or 60 years ago.  
  
Apolla still looked as beautiful and radiant from when Leo had first met her. Such a kind whitelighter, she was. Never in his life had he met someone so free-spirited, or honest. Natalie was never like this. Apolla was like a mother to Sam, and he didn't know how to thank her enough. It was hard, seeing your daughter grow up but not actually being able to meet her.  
  
He hated the Elders now, for putting him through hell for the last decade or so. It was their fault, for not getting married to Piper, for not being able to be the father or parental figure he had always dreamed he would be. It was wrong. It was if the Elders had no feelings.  
  
Something interrupted his thoughts when he saw it in the corner of his eye. His frown turned upside down as he saw the girl come down the stairs and into the kitchen to sit in between his two best friends. The girl was beautiful, and looked like a miniature version of Piper. She was so big now, and he wanted to go in there and kiss her forehead, the way he had done the last time he got to hold her.  
  
He felt terrible, that he got to see Samantha a few times, while Piper was out there not being able to see her at all. He knew how much Piper grieved each day from the moment Sam was born. But no matter how much he wanted to, he could never tell Piper where Sam was, or about what he did years ago. If he did, Piper would be out looking for her, and it wouldn't be nice. The Elders could find out and then there would be pandemonium. He tried to see her every now and then, but conditions were growing worse for both of them.  
  
The Elders grew more and more suspicious each day Leo was late for a staff meeting or was not seen with his charge. They kept close surveillance all the time. He was practically committing suicide when he decided to come to see his daughter. But he felt like it was all worth it.  
  
He took one last glance at the young girl, so he could remember her in her memories, and then orbed out.  
  
****  
  
Artemis rubbed his head as he finished paperwork on the kitchen table. "So many numbers. Goodness, I haven't done this much bills since the Great Depression in 1929." He muttered. Apolla was at the stove, frying eggs and bacon and the same time. She was so jovial all the time. She hummed a happy tune as she cooked.  
  
"Oh Artemis, don't be so stubborn. We've gotten by 14 years as a normal married couple, now I think that you can get by with a couple of bills, honey bunny." She said, giggling. Artemis rolled his eyes. "I STILL can't believe that we've gotten this far. And that's sick Apolla. We're NOT married, we are merely pretending to be. We don't even sleep in the same bed for goodness sake. And what's with the Pam thing? You had to make another name...At least mine was close to my real name!" He said.  
  
"Quiet Arty. Sam might hear you. And what's with the name Pam? I LIKE the name Pamela for your information. And if you don't like it well too bad!" She snapped at him. Artemis laid his paperwork down and walked over to the side of the stove to talk to Apolla. "Apolla, I'm worried about the girl.. I have strange feelings now. I have senses that evil could attack at any moment. I'm worried, that Samantha will get hurt." He whispered.  
  
Apolla turned to Artemis. "I know. I've been getting the same feelings. I don't know. Her powers have grown to a very high level so that means many darklighters and demons could sense it. I mean, I know that we bound her powers with potion Leo obtained, but she still has her whitelighter instincts and etc. We couldn't bind her from those. What worries me even more, is that the Elders could sense it. Artemis, we can't let them sense her. It would mean the end of Leo and Piper as we know it."  
  
"Leo?? What about us??? We could be sent to the execution room for all we know.." he mumbled. Apolla kicked him in his shin. "Ow." He muttered at her, rubbing his leg.  
  
"Artemis. How can you be so selfish? We're doing this for Leo. The poor soul hasn't seen his daughter in over a decade. And aren't you thankful we agreed to the assignment? Dear Sammy has been so rewarding to us. I have seen the look in your eyes over the years Artemis. You love her as if she were your son." She whispered and looked him in the eye.  
  
Artemis looked away. It was true. He loved Sam as if she were his own daughter. Many times had she brought joy into his life when he was feeling sad. That baby was a regular miracle. He felt Apolla's hand on his shoulder. "I know how you feel Artemis. I miss my daughter as well, but you know as well as I do that this is the closest we will ever get to seeing our children again." She said sadly. Artemis nodded in agreement.  
  
"I think she's smoking." Artemis said suddenly. Apolla turned away from the crackling of the bacon and looked at Artemis wide eyed. " WHAT?" she screamed at him. Artemis was scared of the sudden angry tone. "Why don't you STOP her?"  
  
"She doesn't know that I know."  
  
"Well maybe I should ground her. That will show her some good."  
  
"She's feeling empty Apolla." He said as he went back to his seat at the kitchen table. "She wants to know who Leo and Piper were."  
  
Apolla finished her cooking and put the plate of freshly cooked breakfast on the table. Artemis reached out to grab a strip of bacon but Apolla slapped his hand away. "Hey. Those are for LATER." She snapped at him. Artemis backed away.  
  
"That's...Well..what do we do then?" she asked. Artemis shrugged. "I don't know what we can do. But I know that we have to protect her from the truth."  
  
Suddenly, they both heard pounding footsteps coming down the stairs. They both glanced up to see a fairly tall, teenage girl, with chestnut brown hair that was bouncing on her back. She rushed down the stairs with her messenger bag strapped over her shoulder.  
  
She walked into the kitchen and ran by them to kiss her uncle and her aunt. "Good morning Aunt Pam, Uncle Art." She said quickly, heading to the fridge to grab the half gallon of milk.  
  
"Hey honey. You have any clubs or anything today that we should know about?" Apolla asked, putting some eggs and bacon onto an empty plate and laying it on a place mat in front of an empty chair. Sam went over to the cabinets by the stove and grabbed a small glass and started to pour her milk into it.  
  
"Uh, I have...photography club, creative writing club and that's about it. I think I'll be home by five at least. Why? Are you guys going somewhere or something?"  
  
"No, no. I just want to know what time you're coming home that's all."  
  
"Oh ok." She said, putting the milk back in the fridge and she sat down at the table to eat her breakfast. Apolla stroked her hair and Sam gave a small smile. "Hon. Is there anything troubling you?" she asked.  
  
Sam shook her head in suspicion. "Uhhh, noooo...why would you say that??" she asked, looking up from her food. Apolla shrugged. "You seemed different lately."  
  
"I have?" Sam lied. "I don't see anything different about me."  
  
Apolla could tell right away that she was lying. They were top whitelighters after all. They could sense if people were bluffing or not. "Just, if you want to talk. Me and your Uncle Art are here. Ok?" she said. Sam nodded. "Yeah ok."  
  
She got up from the table and kissed both of them goodbye once again. "Bye." She said, grabbing her messenger bag from under the table and running out the door for school. Apolla looked at Artemis. Artemis looked at her from his newspaper.  
  
"You go talk to her." They both said at the same time.  
  
****  
  
"Paige!! Get the crossbow!! We need the crossbow!!!" Phoebe screamed to her younger sister. Paige nodded and shouted: "CROSSBOW!!!" as loud as she could.  
  
The darklighter looked up and saw that his crossbow was dematerializing out of his hand into the hand of the witch he was fighting. "Ahhh!" the darklighter screamed in anger. Paige was startled by how heavy the crossbow was in her arms.  
  
Phoebe ran and kicked the darklighter in mid air. The darklighter flew to the other side of the room and crashed into a wall. He quickly got up but then Piper froze him. "Paige! Get the girl!" she screamed. Paige nodded again and went to get the little girl he was holding hostage. She carried the girl in her arms and stood back. The little girl was crying for her mom, and Paige tried to calm her down.  
  
Phoebe who now had hold of the crossbow shot an arrow at the darklighter. The darklighter became unfrozen and looked at the arrow in his chest. He screamed as he exploded into a bright light. Paige covered the girl so that she wouldn't be hurt.  
  
All three girls gave a sigh of relief. Another demon down for the day. Phoebe and Piper went over to Paige and the little girl to see if she was hurt. The little girl stopped crying but looked scared to death. Phoebe and Piper kneeled down so they were eye to eye with the little girl.  
  
"Who..who are you? And...who was that?" she asked in a little baby voice. The girl was only 5 or 6, so she was naïve on everything that happened. Phoebe smiled. "We're good people. That's all you basically need to know. And that man was a bad man. You want to stay away from people like that ok?" she said calmly. The little girl nodded.  
  
"Why..did he want me? Why did he take me away?" the little girl asked, questions formed in her mind. Piper put a hand on her shoulder. "The bad man wanted you because someday, you are going to do great things for people. And he didn't want that to happen. So he got you and it was our job to get you back to your mommy and daddy."  
  
"And now that we did, we could get you back real soon. Just remember not to do anything bad. Keep doing good things like you always do, and one day in the future, you will do a great thing that's good for everyone." Paige finished. The little girl smiled and nodded. She hugged all three of them at once. The three embraced the little girl tightly.  
  
"Katie?? Katie are you there sweetie??" a worried woman's voice interrupted their moment. The three stood up and turned around to see a woman and a man coming towards them. They seemed to be the girl's parents. "Katie!!!" the woman exclaimed as she saw her daughter.  
  
"Mommy!!" the girl shouted as she ran into her mother's arms. The man hugged both of them. The woman was in tears. The man went over to the three sisters and pulled out his checkbook. "I can't thank you enough for finding our little girl. You three are truly angels. How much would you like?"  
  
Phoebe shook her head and pushed the checkbook away. "No sir. It was our pleasure. We're just happy that Katie's safe and sound." She said. The man shook all of their hands and nodded his head several times. "Thank you again. Thank you so much." He said as he walked away to see his daughter.  
  
"Geez Phoebe. Those people look rich. We could of gotten a mighty big reward from him..." Paige said jokingly. Phoebe laughed as she pushed Paige lightly on her arm. "That girl was so cute. I'm gonna miss her. It was nice having a little girl hang around us. Don't you think Piper?" Paige said, turning to Piper. But her smile quickly turned into a frown as soon as she saw her older sister.  
  
Piper was staring, and crying as she watched the family gather together. The mother held her daughter tightly, crying her eyes out. "I never want to lose you again. You are my world..." she said. Piper stared at the scene as her vision started to blur from the tears that ran down her cheeks. She turned around. Phoebe and Paige looked at her sympathetically. Paige and Phoebe grabbed her in a hug. Piper felt comforted by the embrace her sisters gave her.  
  
She let go and dried her eyes. "Look at me. Such a crybaby...I mean it's been 14 years, I should be over it right?" she said with a fake laugh.  
  
"Honey, you'll never be over it. She was your daughter. Nobody likes to lose their child. And don't worry, we're here for you." Paige said. Phoebe nodded in agreement. "Let's go home." She said as she and Paige put her arms around Piper and they started their walk to the car.  
  
~*~*~*  
  
A/N: Okay...chapter is done. Well why are you reading the stupid authors note people, go click the button below it and review for pete's sake!! Oh, and see? Hollyfanatik agrees with me! What DID happen to the commercials? One of life's greatest mysteries... 


	5. A Familiar Face

A/N: Happy Thanksgiving Everyone! Just so you know, I changed the story a bit, so reread chaps 3 and 4 ok? Well, I made this chap really long, so I just though I'd warn you. Thanks to my loyal reviewers!!  
  
__________________  
  
Sam walked to school, feeling the cool breeze from November. She kept her arms wrapped around her so it would make her warmer. She tried to close any parts of her sweater that would let any cold breeze in. Her lip shook a little, and she stared at the sidewalk as she walked.  
  
She wondered about her mother. She wanted to see her, bad. I mean, she hasn't even seen one single image of the person, so how was she to know if they had the same eyes, or the same beautiful brown hair. Most of all, she never had a real mother figure in her life. Sure, Aunt Pam was a big help, but she was never what she really wanted. She simply wanted not just any mother, but hers, to hold her in her arms, and to say how proud she is of her, and say how much she loves her.  
  
She wondered about her father. It hurt her so much to see the neighbors next door, the little boy playing a game of catch with his dad. She never knew what he looked like either. She didn't know if they had the same chin, or if she had his dimples or something like that. She wanted her dad to carry her, and to smile and call her "Daddy's little angel". All she wanted was a perfect family. Something that she had never experienced in her life.  
  
But why now? She had never wondered THIS much about her parents before. Was this like a certain time to be wondering about them? Was she realizing how empty her life has been the past few years? That's another thing. She had never felt these empty spaces in her heart before. Was it because she was fourteen? She didn't know. All she knew was that she wanted answers.  
  
The next thing she knew, a car pulled up on her left. She turned to see who it was. The car was a black BMW 3954i. She knew exactly who's car it was. The window rolled down and Sam peered in to look at the driver.  
  
"Hey Sam." The driver said. Sam smiled. It was her best friend. Not really her best friend. A close friend. The school counselor. Don't get her wrong now. She went to her school counselor all the time when she had a problem. She wasn't mental or anything. The counselor was someone to talk to. And the counselor helped her A LOT. "Prue!!!" Sam exclaimed. The woman with long, black hair grinned has her smile brightened the dark car. "Hey kid. You look cold. You want a ride?" she asked. Sam smiled. Prue helped her through everything the past few years. They were seriously like best friends. And since she didn't have many friends at school, she was happy hanging out with Prue. She didn't want many friends at school. They would get too close, and then they would realize her weird powers. She didn't want that.  
  
Sam opened the car door and quickly got into the car. Prue motioned for her to put on her seat belt and she did what she was told. Prue started the drive. "So how's school Sam?"  
  
"Fine..I got my grades up for biology. Now I just have to work on geometry."  
  
"That's good. I'm proud of you." She said. Sam grinned. Prue was like an extra aunt for her. She and Aunt Pam were great friends, so it was really like they were related. "And, how are things at home?"  
  
Sam's grin disappeared at the question. The memories of her recent thoughts flooded back to her mind. "It's...ok."  
  
Prue sensed there was something wrong. "Uh oh. What happened?"  
  
"Nothing, really....nothing." Sam said as she turned away to look out the window.  
  
"Oh no, you're not gonna get out THAT easy. When you go from bouncy, happy face to a sad, hurt face then I could tell something is wrong. Did something happen at home?"  
  
Sam shook her head. "Promise you won't tell?" she asked. Prue shook her head, took one hand off the wheel and raised up her hand. "I promise."  
  
Sam sighed and gave up. She needed to tell someone. She couldn't keep it all bottled up. And who better to tell it to, then Prue? "I've been wondering about my parents a lot."  
  
Prue seemed to flinch at the subject. She looked nervous and started to sweat. "Honey, what about your parents?"  
  
"It's just that. I don't know. It's like, for some reason, I'm wondering about them a lot at this particular part of my life. And I'm not saying that I never did wonder about them and I'm not saying that I'm not going to think about them in the future, but I've been thinking about it too much. Also, when I'm around Aunt Pam and Uncle Art, I just want to get away, because I get this really bad feeling about them. Like something bad is going to happen..."  
  
There was a pause. Prue didn't know what to say. She kept her eyes steadied on the road and then looked back to Sam. Sam looked helpless, she looked worried, and she looked hurt. "Honey, I don't know what to say. I....Maybe you should be telling your aunt and uncle instead of me..."  
  
"I don't think they would really understand. And besides, I don't want them to worry about me or anything. It's like I want to protect them so badly."  
  
"Why do you feel that?"  
  
"As I said, it's just a big feeling I have."  
  
Prue paused again to think for a moment. She gave a big sigh. "Well, about your parents. It's just feelings inside you. Maybe you're feeling jealous, I really don't know. Just, try not to think about it that much. And the same goes for your feelings about your aunt and uncle. Try not to think about it, but if those feelings get to strong, you HAVE to tell them. I'm here only for your guidance and support. If you need me just call, but it's you who has to do the actions. Ok?"  
  
Sam seemed satisfied. Prue turned back to the road as she pulled up at the curb of the school. Sam opened the door slowly, but then glanced back before she went out. "Thanks." She said in great gratitude. Prue smiled as she waved goodbye.  
  
Sam slammed the door, but then looked back into the window. "Aren't you coming? You are the counselor of the school you know...." Sam asked in suspicion. Prue glanced back to her nervously.  
  
"Not right now. I'll be there later. I have to go to the school across town for some work....I'll see you." She said quickly. Sam shrugged and ran to the entrance of the school. Prue exhaled, and turned around to head back to the house.  
  
****  
  
Prue pressed the lighted button on the big two story suburban house. She waited patiently on the steps of the house. She brushed her long black hair out of her face and rang the doorbell again. From outside the door, she could hear voices coming closer and closer to her.  
  
At last, the door opened. She smiled as she saw the female in front of her. "Hello Apolla." She said as she hugged her. Apolla grinned and embraced her. "Prue! Oh, so glad you finally came to see us! I haven't seen you in a while." She said, enjoying their little hug.  
  
They let go of each other and Apolla gestured for her to come in. "Please Prue, come in. Artemis is in the kitchen, and I just got out a pot of tea. We'll talk there." She said as she pulled Prue into the house. They walked to the kitchen and as Artemis saw Prue he put his mug of tea down and stood up.  
  
"Prue! You're here! Apolla and I haven't seen you in practically a month!" he said as he went over to her to shake her hand. Prue grinned as he shook the man's hand. "It's good to see you too Artemis."  
  
Artemis pulled out a chair for her as Apolla poured her a cup of tea. Prue sat down and so did the other two. Artemis laid his hands on the table and folded them in front of him. "So, how are you doing Prue?"  
  
"I'm doing good. I'm still getting used to the variety of charges though. I mean, the past 16 years, I've mostly only had about 1-3 charges since I was a rookie. But now that I have kind of advanced into the intermediate level, it's at least 15 charges a day. And with the special attention I have to give Samantha, it's very hard to keep it all up."  
  
Artemis laughed. "Yes, I remember those days. But it gets better after 50 years or so. Now that Apolla and I have been in the business for so long, and we're practically a top advanced whitelighters, they only give us one here and there. It's like a thank you for taking care of so many charges and their problems over the years." He said. Apolla chuckled and nodded in agreement.  
  
"I'm sure it will get better Prue. It just takes time. Being a whitelighter is never easy." Apolla added. Prue nodded, storing the knowledge in her head. She was quickly reminded about her reason for coming. "Artemis, Apolla, I came here to talk to you about Sam."  
  
Both their faces fell at the sound of her name. The worries they had flooded back to her minds. "Yeah, you're having problems too?"  
  
Prue nodded. "She said something about worrying about you two, and her parents. I was sort of shocked, because she sounded different this time when she mentioned Piper and Leo. I mean, not only being her whitelighter, but being her aunt, I wanted to help her so bad, but I don't exactly know how."  
  
"Same thing with us, only she barely talks to us. She's always locked in her room doing something. She started smoking."  
  
"WHAT? When did this happen?" Prue said, surprised and concerned for her niece. Artemis sighed. "A couple weeks. She's doing it to take her troubles away. It's terrible." He said, shaking his head.  
  
"Poor girl. I hear her cry at night, from where I'm working. It's horrible, truly horrible." She said. "You do?" Apolla asked. Prue nodded her head. "She is my personal charge. I can hear every cry. I always keep an extra ear out in case something comes for her or something. Not like it's really going to happen, but I mean, I really want to protect her. She's my sister's daughter, I feel like I have to care for her, you know?"  
  
Artemis and Apolla nodded. "Prue. We're afraid. Her whitelighter senses and instincts grow faster and faster. The Elders may sense it. Darklighters could sense it."  
  
"I know, I've tried my best at covering her tracks. We have to do everything in our power to keep her from the Elders. We cannot let them find out. For our sake, and for Leo's sake. We know what they're capable of, and we know what they can do. The Elders just think that Sam is a normal human that is my charge to guide. They don't know that she is my niece. Of course, I didn't either until you guys discovered who I was, but that's besides the point."  
  
"I've been getting strange feelings Prue. About her, about her danger, about us. Every single day the feeling gets stronger. It's nothing I have felt before." Artemis said.  
  
"We both feel it. We can't forget that Sam, alone, with all of her powers, is one of the most powerful beings on Earth. She'll be a target and who knows if she's not a target already. It's our job, as her angels to protect her in anyway we can." Apolla added. Prue and Artemis agreed.  
  
Prue got up to leave. "I'm going to be late for work. Just know, that I'll be keeping an extra eye and ear out for her. If something happens, I won't be far. I'll see you two." She said, as she orbed to her car.  
  
****  
  
Paige shuffled through the papers on the dining room table. She had been working all night on her work. It has been nothing but work for her lately. She hasn't had the time to date, or have any fun with work, witchcraft and demons on her schedule.  
  
If she didn't hurry, she would be really late. She had to go to a school across town to speak to some of the teachers and staff etc. about some of the kids she had at social services. It was a very complicated situation. "Dammit...." she muttered as she stuffed everything into her briefcase and ran to the kitchen to grab a quick cup of coffee.  
  
Piper sat at the kitchen table, typing away on her laptop. P3 has gotten really successful over the last decade. Her club was one of the top 5 in the San Francisco area. They had made a lot of money lately, but Piper didn't seem to care one bit.  
  
Things were never the same between the sisters. It's like they grew more distant. Piper had the same old thing in her mind. Her daughter and Leo. She was desperate to see Leo again, but whenever she saw him, it was just too painful to think about all the problems they had over the years.  
  
She wanted to hold her daughter in her arms sometimes. She would have given anything to just see her, but she knew it was forbidden. Piper knew that her mother went through the same thing when they gave up Paige, but her mother had had three other daughters to love. Piper had none.  
  
She wanted to see what she looked like, and how she turned out. She should be about 14 years old now, and it hurt to know that she had never seen a glimpse of what she looked like. She wanted to know, if Samantha had her hair and her eyes or if she had Leo's chin or his smile.  
  
Paige and Phoebe didn't want to bother her most of the time. They didn't want to offend her, or make her think about it even more. They didn't know how to help her at all in this time of situation, so they laid low.  
  
As Piper typed, Paige ran in and grabbed a mug from the cabinets. "Hey Pipe." She said as she poured herself a cup of joe. Piper grunted a little and didn't take her eyes off the screen. Paige sighed and took a sip of the cold liquid. As soon as she tasted the stuff, she spit it back into the cup.  
  
"Ewwww. Who made this coffee? It's cold and it doesn't taste very good."  
  
"Sorry, I was up all night. I...just made myself some coffee last night and forgot to make the new batch."  
  
"Piper, why were you up last night?"  
  
"I don't know. Part of me was hoping that Leo would come and see me, the other part just wanted to think. It doesn't matter, I don't really need sleep anyway."  
  
"Well, of course you do! Piper! You are running one of the most successful clubs in San Francisco! You need to look good when they interview you and when famous bands come to meet you and other stuff! Come on!" she pleaded. Paige hoped to hear some kind of laugh from Piper but it obviously didn't work.  
  
"I don't really care." Was all that Piper had said. Piper seemed dead lately. Like a zombie that had been brought back to life. She had not been showing any emotion or feelings. She had just been quiet and robot like most of the time. Paige sighed.  
  
Piper closed her laptop and turned around. "So what are you going to do today?" she asked, leaning on the back of the chair. Paige shrugged. "See a couple teachers from a school across town for some charges, I mean, clients. I'm really starting to mix the two up."  
  
"Well, what do you expect when you're a social worker and a whitelighter for the last few years?" Piper said sarcastically. Paige gave a half smile and kissed her sister on the cheek. "I'll be back by dinner. Don't wait up."  
  
"Don't worry, we'll probably have chinese anyway. I'm not even in the mood to cook." Piper said. Paige gave a worried look to her sister and bolted out the door with her things. Phoebe came down the steps as she was leaving.  
  
"Hey Paige."  
  
Paige turned around to see her sister. "Oh hey Phoebe. Your off day?" she asked. Phoebe nodded. "Yep."  
  
"Well, take care of Piper, and don't drink the coffee. Bye." She said as she slammed the front door of the house. Phoebe processed the words for a minute, wondering what she meant but then just gave up and walked to the kitchen.  
  
She saw her older sister's head on the kitchen table. She was sound asleep. Phoebe shook her head.  
  
'God, she stayed up all night again.' She thought. She glanced over to the pot of coffee on the counter. She walked over to it, and dipped her finger in it. She pulled her finger out quickly, seeing that it was cold as ice. She poured the liquid into the sink and made a new hot pot of coffee.  
  
She poured some in a mug and set it beside her slumbering sister. Phoebe sat down next to her and stroked her messed up hair. "Piper, honey." Piper opened her eyes and saw her younger sister in front of her. Realizing that she fell asleep, she sat up quickly and rubbed her eyes. "What?" she asked. Phoebe pushed the mug of coffee towards her. "I made some coffee. How are you feeling?"  
  
"Like shit." Piper said as she grabbed the mug and sipped it.  
  
"You should go sleep." Phoebe said. Piper shrugged. " Not really."  
  
"You can't go to the club if you're going to fall asleep every time you sit down. Go to bed, I'll call Collin at the club and tell him to take over while you call in sick." She said. Piper shook her head. "No, I can't." she said as she was about to open her laptop again. Phoebe stopped her.  
  
"Yes, you can." She said, in a serious tone. Piper gave up and started to walk to her room with the mug of coffee in her hand. As she was about to leave the kitchen Phoebe called: "Piper."  
  
Piper whirled around to see her baby sister's face like she never seen since the last life threatening situation. It was the look of fear.  
  
"Piper. I'm here for you. Please, just know that."  
  
There was a silence between them, until Piper just stayed silent as she walked out of the kitchen and up to her room. 


	6. Recognizing Fears

A fairly, young man, with blond spiky hair, and long dark clothes, walked into what looked like, a business office. He closed the door behind him and he walked up to a desk that was in the middle of the office. He slowly put his hands behind his back, and stood up straight, as if he were a soldier. "Arkon.." he said sternly.  
  
The chair in front of him, behind the desk turned around slowly. A bald middle aged man appeared in the chair, his hands formed into a triangle in front of his face, and he looked as if he were waiting for something. His hands then went onto his desk, where they tapped away. The blond man gulped, and he showed many signs of fear.  
  
"Well?" Arkon asked, as he gave a deathly stare to the blond man, still tapping his fingers on the table. The blond man took a deep breath. "My lord, I don't have it. Unfortunately, one of my men, he was intercepted by witches before he ever got to take the girl's soul....." he said nervously.  
  
Arkon banged his hand on the table. "I don't CARE IF SOME STUPID WITCHES GOT THE GIRL FIRST!!! THAT'S NOT DOING YOUR JOB!!! I AM TRUSTING YOU FOR GETTING THE POWER FROM THE INNOCENT SOULS FOR ME AND WHAT DO YOU DO?? BLOW IT!!!" he screamed at the blond man. He stood up from his chair and started to destroy the things on his desk to vent his anger. Grunts came from him as he smashed trophies and other items that hung around in his office. Then he ran and took the blond man by the neck and held him up slowly. The blond man's hands went on Arkon's one hand holding him up. He was trying to get out of the hold, but Arkon's grip was too strong. As he was held up in the air, his legs swung around like mad as he slowly started to choke.  
  
"How many times Spencer?? How many times are you going to fail to get me power?? Sure those other whitelighter souls were helpful to my health, but I want to be INDESTRUCTABLE!!!" he said, revealing the man's name. Spencer choked on his saliva, trying to talk but no words seemed to come out clearly. Arkon threw Spencer against a wall, then walked back to his chair. Spencer adjusted his jaw and felt his neck, happy it was free from his grasp. He quickly stood up, leaving a big hole in the wall from where he got slammed.  
  
"What about whitelighter wise? Did you get any souls from them??" Arkon asked quickly, trying to control the anger he had rising within him. Spencer cleared his throat. "Yes, but not ones that you were really looking for. Barely any of them passed the power level of 3." He said, getting ready in case Arkon went on another rampage against him.  
  
Arkon closed his eyes and breathed slowly. Spencer could tell he was trying to keep his anger from making him kill. He gulped again, afraid the office would be the last thing he would see before turning into a walking fireball. But instead, Arkon surprised him and nodded his head. "Ok...But I know there is more power out there. I can feel it....I can taste it." He said, opening his eyes and glaring at Spencer. Spencer merely nodded, afraid that anything he said would set Arkon's anger off again.  
  
"What do you think Spencer?" Arkon practically spit out. He had a very disgusted tone, telling Spencer that he was sick of him. Spencer shook with fear. "Maybe...I could get you witches..my lord...." he said, adding a term of respect.  
  
"Maybe you haven't heard me right...I don't want witches..." he said slowly. "I WANT POWER!!!" he exclaimed suddenly as he banged his tightly formed fist on his desk once again. The loud sound startled Spencer, as he once again shook in fear. Arkon calmed down again and sighed. "Just look for more whitelighters out there....or something. And find more souls...Remember that all of us have deadlines Spencer..you don't want to meet yours just yet. And if I were you, I'd take the word DEADline seriously." He said sternly, exaggerating some syllables in his speech.  
  
Spencer nodded and turned to leave. Just before he turned the knob of the door he quickly got called back by Arkon. "Wait." He heard him call. Spencer gulped another batch of saliva down his throat, thinking that once he turned around, Arkon would throw a fireball at him. He paused for a minute and slowly turned around. "Yes, my lord?" he said, stuttering every syllable.  
  
"Use this." Arkon said, as he threw a small, long crystal at him. Spencer caught it and examined it closely. "For what sir?" he asked curiously, still observing the crystal. "It's a tracking crystal. It senses power levels. It will start flashing once it has found some. The brighter it flashes, the higher the power level is." Arkon said lazily. He lied back in his chair with his feet on his desk. "Use it well."  
  
"You're trusting this with me Arkon?" he asked, shocked at the gift he had given him. Arkon shrugged. "Heck, you got this far working for me. Had to give you credit for that...usually my head search darklighter only lasts 2 days. It's been weeks for you." He said casually. Spencer felt like smiling, but kept a serious expression on his face.  
  
"Of course. I'll try my best my lord." He replied, but it wasn't good enough for Arkon. "I don't want you to TRY. I want you to get me that power. Now go. Deadlines Spencer, Deadlines." He reminded him. Spencer nodded. He quickly turned the knob of the door and headed out.  
  
Arkon sighed and rubbed his head. "This is what I get for being a demon who gets darklighters to work for him...." He muttered. He was getting a migraine from all the screaming he had been doing lately and he didn't like it one bit.  
  
****  
  
Paige rushed through crowded halls with stacks of paperwork in her arms. She was really rushing now. She had been late with the appointment with the principal and now she had to go catch the vice principal to talk to. She squished through all the teenage students that attended the large high school. It was in between periods, and the bell had just rang so everyone was at their lockers or chatting with friends or rushing to get to their next class.  
  
Paige had been running through the halls but unexpectedly got stuck in teenage body traffic. She held the papers in her arms tightly as she tried to hurry to catch the vice principal. She had almost been there when she suddenly crashed into another student. Paige fell on her butt and the papers that she had been holding were now either all over the floor or tightly in the air. Paige sighed.  
  
The bell had rung again, which signaled the end of the students' social conversations. Everyone rushed into classrooms, some stepping on the papers that had once been in Paige's grasp. Paige whimpered for a few seconds, frustrated that this had ever happen. "Why me?? Why me???" she whispered to herself as she buried her face in her hands and started shaking her head.  
  
Just about all the students had entered her classroom already except for the student Paige had crashed into. She was a young girl, with long, chestnut brown hair. Her books had fallen on the floor as well as the unstapled report she was holding in her hands. She rubbed her arm, for it hurt a little. She opened her eyes to see the woman in front of her. She was young, had short, red hair, and looked quite pretty. But something about her looked vaguely familiar.  
  
Paige took her face out of her hands and glanced up to see the student she had crashed into. She found herself being stared at by the young girl. She lifted one eyebrow as she saw this and slowly started to get up. She held out her hand to the young girl, gesturing for her to take it and get up. "I'm sorry about that..." She said as the girl took her hand and stood up.  
  
They both brushed off the dust that had splashed onto their clothes. The young girl glanced around at the paper mess and sighed. "No really, it was my fault. I was rushing too much." She said as she bent down to pick up all the papers that had been spread around. Paige bent down and started sorting the papers as well. After a while, Paige and the young girl had finished picking up the papers and sorting them out.  
  
As the young girl handed the papers and files to Paige, Paige got a closer look at her. She noticed that the young girl looked like an exact mini replica of Piper. And she looked as if she had Leo's chin and bone structure. Paige stared at her, examining her every detail of her face. The young girl noticed it and didn't know what to do. "Um, no offense...uhhh..ma'am, but why are you staring at me like that?" she asked nervously. Paige shook her head and snapped out of her thinking state. "Oh..I'm sorry. It's just that you look familiar....and you look a little like my sister..I...was just thinking...." she was about to say until the young girl heard a calling.  
  
"SAMANTHA FIELDING?? And what do you think you are doing in the halls and not in a classroom???" a middle aged woman called from behind them. Sam panicked and gathered up her books. Paige twitched at the sound of the girl's name. Many thoughts raced through her head as she stared at the young girl. 'No, Samantha. Could it be? Piper's looks...Leo's chin..her name. It couldn't be. Or could it? She could have changed her last name...and it totally makes sense. And she looks 14 years old to me. So could it be...' she thought, but her thoughts were quickly interrupted.  
  
"Ms. Matthews. I'm so sorry about that. I was expecting you earlier..." The woman said to her as she held out her hand. Paige took her eyes off Samantha and shifted the papers in her arms a bit so she could hold out a free hand to shake the woman's hand "Are you..." She started to say, but the woman cut her off. "I'm Mrs. Rowland, the vice principal here at the school. I'm extremely sorry about Samantha here....." she said as she glared at Sam.  
  
"But...I was on my...way to class...and she...I bumped...It was an accident..I didn't mean to...." Sam tried to say, but it only came out in stutters. Her head hung down, ashamed of what she did and she knew that she was in trouble. Mrs. Rowland never really had a liking to Sam. Sam was constantly ending up in her office because of certain things that she was either framed for, or she just couldn't help doing. She was definitely misunderstood by Mrs. Rowland.  
  
"No excuses Sam. You're late for class and you bumped into Ms. Matthews here!!" she screamed at the young girl. Paige felt sympathy for Samantha and butted into the conversation. "Oh..Mrs. Rowland. The whole thing was really my fault, I was rushing too much and I wasn't looking where I was going, and I accidentally crashed into Samantha here...and she was even nice enough to help me gather up my things so it's really me to blame here." She protested.  
  
Samantha was shocked at the kindness Ms. Matthews had given her. She glanced over to Paige in wide, open eyes. She smiled to let her know that she was grateful for getting her out of trouble. Mrs. Rowland paused for a second, glancing at both Paige and Sam for a few minutes as she stood there in disbelief. Finally she gave up to them and sighed. "Okay Sam, you're off the hook, but the next time I catch you doing something or the next time I get one bad report from you, your aunt and uncle will be getting a call from me.." Samantha was shocked at her comment. "But..Mrs. Rowland...I..." she tried to say but the vice principal had interrupted her again. "No buts Sam...you've been in my office way too many times. Now go on to your class before I change my mind and give you detention..tell your teacher that I let you off the hook." She said as she gestured for her to leave. Sam sighed, and gave up to Mrs. Rowland. She was a bit offended about what she assumed about her, but decided to forgive and forget.  
  
Paige felt bad for Samantha. She developed a slight newfound hate for Ms. Rowland. She seemed very hard headed and unfair to the poor, innocent girl. A thought suddenly struck her mind. 'She lives with her aunt and uncle....no parents...could it be her? Could that be Piper and Leo's.....' her thoughts were interrupted once more. She snapped out of her thinking state and glanced up. Samantha held her hand up to Paige.  
  
"It was really nice meeting you Ms. Matthews. Thanks again." She said softly, revealing a shyer side of her. She smiled a warm smile and there...right there, Paige swore that she looked EXACTLY like Piper. The thought replayed in her mind over and over again. This Sam could actually be Piper and Leo's long lost daughter. It could be her niece. And it scared her half to death. Paige smiled at the young girl and shook her hand.  
  
Suddenly, Paige saw Samantha's smile turn into a frown. She closed her eyes. Samantha felt a really cold chill in her spine and gasped a little. Then, when she opened her eyes, Paige saw the look of fear in them. Paige glanced at her weirdly, confused about what just happened. Samantha let go of their handshake quickly and put on a really fake smile on her face.  
  
"Ok. Bye." She said quickly as she left as soon as she could. Paige glanced at the youth, jogging down the halls with her dark hair bouncing on her back as she maneuvered. Then, she put her attention to Mrs. Rowland. Mrs. Rowland shook her head. "That girl...she's always getting into trouble. I gave up hope trying to shape her up a long time ago. She's just troubled that's all."  
  
"Well I'm sure she's not that bad. She seems like a really nice kid to me." Paige tried to defend her. Mrs. Rowland kept shaking her head negatively. "That Sam, always caught at the scene of the crime. And it seems that she's such a mysterious girl. She always comes to us and tells us that she can 'feel' something is going to happen and it does. I mean, she couldn't of known without being part of the crime right?" she said. Paige processed her words in her mind.  
  
"Well, Ms. Matthews, I think we should get to work. Right this way to my office," Mrs. Rowland said as she changed the subject and pointed in a specific direction to lead Paige to her office. Paige nodded and started walking towards the office but then stopped in her tracks for a moment. She whirled around to Mrs. Rowland. "Mrs. Rowland? I would like to ask for a copy of Samantha's file if I could please? I just want to talk to her aunt and uncle about certain things that I'm dealing with at social services with kids like her....if you don't mind." Paige lied. Mrs. Rowland thought for a minute, but then shrugged  
  
"Sure, that girl's file is taking up my cabinet space anyway. It's no trouble.." she said, laughing at her cruel joke. Paige thanked Mrs. Rowland as they walked to her office. She would find out who this girl was, no matter what came in her way.  
  
****  
  
Samantha slammed the door of her locker and slowly walked to the lunchroom. Why did she get the weird feeling with the lady today? Was something going to happen to her too? She didn't want to think about it, but it kept popping up in her mind. She shook her head, wishing that the thoughts would disappear and leave her alone. She hated thinking about protecting everyone. It's what got her in trouble all the time.  
  
When she finally got to the lunchroom, the sound of talking students entered her ear drums. She could barely hear anything in the crowded lunchroom. She had her own lunch, so she just kept an eye out for one of her so called "friends" at one of the tables. She caught eye of the group she tried to hang out with at one table in the middle of the cafeteria.  
  
Three girls were sitting at the table, gossiping while eating the horrid lunch the school served. There was brunette, a red head, and a blonde. The brunette was Karis, the red head was Holly and the blonde was Alyssa. They were the three that let Samantha hang with them. Sam thought that they were cool to hang out with, but they were so different from her. She tried not to let their differences interfere with their friendship because she was grateful that some people in this school actually appreciated her.  
  
Karis saw Samantha approaching, smiled and waved so that they were more noticeable. "Sam!! Over here!!!" she called, trying to get her voice over the hundreds of students that were also screaming out. Sam smiled and squished through the bodies of the lunchroom and finally got over to their table. "Hey guys." She said as she sat down and opened her lunch bag.  
  
"Hi."  
  
"Hey."  
  
"Sup."  
  
All three greeted their friend. Sam grinned as she took out her food. She didn't really eat that much, and always brought a light lunch. An apple, or and orange and a candy bar with a juice box. Nothing much. She wasn't a big fan of eating, even though her Aunt Pam cooked constantly. But she was a big fan of cooking. It was something she had that she was actually good at. She doesn't know why she was such a good cook, but heck. A talent is a talent.  
  
"So, are we seriously up for going tonight?" Alyssa asked the other three. Sam looked up from her Snickers bar. "For what?" she asked with a full mouth of caramel, chocolate and peanuts. Karis and Alyssa smiled. "We're planning on sneaking into P3 tonight, the hottest club in town." Karis said slyly.  
  
"What?" Sam said, shocked at their plan for tonight. "You guys, we're only 14, and you're planning to break into a raver's club already? Don't you think that's a little bit....big?" she asked them, hoping to change their minds. Alyssa shook her head. "No way!! It's going to be awesome. We'll have the time of our lives! Cute guys, older guys. And we'll dance, and see a band. It'll be a blast!!"  
  
"How are we going to get inside in the first place? That place is so crowded, and they're really strict on id's and such. I heard the owner put a person in jail once when he used a fake i.d." she added. Karis grinned and raised her hand. "I got a cousin who has a friend that has a friend that works as a security guard. We'll get in no problem!" she said as she took a bite into a cupcake.  
  
"I don't know you guys. What if we get caught?" Holly asked, in a soft and shy voice. Sam sighed. At least Holly was on her side. She was always the cautious one in the group. Holly was one of her best friends. She was really her only REAL best friend. Alyssa and Karis were merely just friends. Sam thought there was a big difference. Alyssa smirked. "Please, like we'll ever get caught. It's totally impossible. Nobody will really notice us, and everyone's too busy having fun to notice us anyway!!" she said excitedly.  
  
Karis nodded in agreement. Holly seemed to give up and nodded. "Ok. What time?" she asked. Sam was disappointed in their quick loss. She had a real bad feeling about it, but then when she looked in the eyes of her friends staring at her, she shrugged. "Yeah, what time?" she asked. She didn't know where her instincts would follow her, and she didn't know what she had gotten herself into.  
  
A/N: I spent a lot of time on this chap. Hope you all like it. Thanks for the reviews! I dedicate this chap to my best buddy Mehreen, because she's always been there to review!! Love ya lots!! 


	7. Hurtful Words

A/N: Hmmmm….well the reviews are rolling and it's great! I'm really glad people like my fic! Please keep reading and reviewing! I am eternally grateful for your response!! Thanks! Oh, and just to let you know…….I'm taking the Aunt Pam, Uncle Art and Sam situation into a spiderman related scenario so……it'll seem similar to the movie!! If you've seen it that is…….

Samantha walked quickly on the silvered pavement as the moonlight shone above her. It was 4-o clock, but the sun was practically already set since it was wintertime and the days were shorter. She hugged herself, protecting her skin from the bitter cold. It had never been this chilly in November before. Especially not in the outskirts of San Francisco. Her high school and house wasn't far from the city but they sure weren't in the city. She was located in what you could call a suburb of the Golden Gate City. 

She wanted to hurry home, and get ready. She thought of what she would say to her guardians as she entered the house. _'Should I say I'm going to the library to do homework? Or how about Karis's house to work on a project? No, that means that they would call her house and then I would get caught. How about the pizza place? Or the mall? Yeah……..how about the pizza place, the mall and then arcade? That'll be good, then they wouldn't be able to track me down and I'd have an excuse to come late night……….'_ She thought to herself. Her messenger bag weighed her shoulder down, causing her to feel a bit of pain. She shifted her bag on her shoulder and kept walking.

She was nervous. She was dead nervous. She had never pulled something this big on her aunt and uncle. And besides, she barely got away. Many times she had gotten caught and had gotten in trouble. She didn't want to get caught this time. She COULDN'T get caught this time. It would be pandemonium for her. She couldn't believe that she actually agreed to the plan. Going to a club would be crossing the boundaries of their limitations as a teenager. Clubs only allowed people 18 and older. They were 4 years from that time, and were taking a real big risk. They could get arrested if they got caught! The penalty was so big, it scared Sam to death.

But she really had no choice. She did whatever her friends agreed to doing. She didn't want to feel like that, but the feeling of being left out and fitting into a group always seemed to take over her mind. It was part of peer pressure. She was 14 and wanted friends. It was really rare for her, especially with the de ja vu stuff happening around her. She encouraged herself even more to just try and forget about it, but her self-support wasn't exactly working.

As she reached her half way point to her house she tried to fix her mind on something else. Like the woman she had met today in the hallway. She seemed so vaguely familiar. Samantha had tried all day to figure out where she had met her before. She didn't pay attention in class anyway so what better to waste your time on the stranger? She thought about the cold feeling she felt in her body. How the chill always came when something was about to happen. Was it a coincidence? She didn't know, but she needed answers. And she needed them quick. 

She also noticed that the Ms. Matthews had been staring at her weirdly for a few seconds. She secretly wished that she knew what other people thought. _'Did she think I looked familiar too? Did she recognize me from somewhere?'_ she asked herself rhetorically. It bothered her the whole day and it was bothering her now. Hey, at least it was getting her mind off P3 and her friend's plan to take a risk and enter a raver's club. And it seemed like Ms. Matthews was a really nice person. She had saved Sam from getting in trouble with Mrs. Rowland again. She didn't want anything bad to happen to her. But she hated it when she felt that she needed to protect all the time. 

After a while, she finally reached her humble home that she shared with her two guardians. A free hand reached out to her pocket and took out her house key. She took a deep breath, hoping that the two were in the kitchen. Her Aunt Pam only had a part time job, that lasted about 4 hours and it was during Sam's school time. Her Uncle Art worked a night shift at some company. She suddenly realized that her whole life, she had never known where they went or worked. It had never crossed her mind until now. Every time she tried to ask for a school project or just for her own personal knowledge, they seemed to change the subject. It never really seemed to be a big thing to Samantha though. She wasn't exactly the kind of person who goes shopping all the time and constantly asked for money. All that she knew that she got what she wanted most of the time she asked, and that Uncle Art had great working job that was brought in a lot of money. You could tell by their house that they earned a great deal of money.

She realized that she had been standing at the door the whole time, and she used her keys. Slowly and silently, she opened the brass doorknob of her house and walked in. She could smell the sweet aroma of coffee in the air and she could see that her aunt and uncle were indeed in the kitchen. They must have heard the silent opening of the door because the next thing Sam knew they were calling her. "Sam? Honey are you home?" she heard her Aunt Pam scream from the room straight ahead of her. 

Samantha sighed, rolled her eyes and replied. "Yeah Aunt Pam. It's me." She said, walking the distance from the front door to the kitchen. She took of her light jacket, her messenger bag and laid them on the stairway before entering the kitchen. There, she saw the same old scene. Her Uncle Art was always sitting at the table, his head buried into his morning paper as a hot mug of coffee laid in front of him. Her Aunt Pam was always at the kitchen counter, baking or frying their soon-to-be dinner, humming a happy and jovial tune. 

"Hey Sammy. How was photography and creative writing club?" her aunt asked her, not looking up from her cooking. Sam stood in the doorway and her heart leaped at the question. She had forgotten all about photography and creative writing club. She had spent her time hanging out with Karis, Holly and Alyssa trying to fit the plans for tonight in her head and talking about where they would meet etc. She regretted ever missing her clubs but didn't have a big care for it. "Oh, it was great. Really great." She said, with some nervousness lingering in her tone.

Her Aunt Pam smiled. "That's nice honey. That's nice. Well, we're having dinner in a few hours so go do your homework and then wash up." She said. 

"Actually, I don't think I'm going to be here for dinner." She practically whispered. Her Uncle took his head out of his paper and looked up at Sam. Her aunt paused her cooking and whirled around to see Sam with a confused look. "Huh?" she asked, lifting an eyebrow.

"I finished my homework in study hall, and I was wondering if I could go somewhere tonight with Karis, Alyssa and Holly?" she asked innocently. Her uncle shifted in his seat. "Where?" he asked suspiciously. Sam panicked and started to sweat. She searched frantically in her mind her excuse for tonight. "Uh. Arcade, Mall then Pizza." She said quickly. There was a silence after that. Her uncle turned to glance at her aunt, and Aunt Pam did the same.

Then, both their expressions seemed to lighten and he shrugged and smiled. "Sure, of course you can. Until what time will you be out? It may be Friday night, but you still have a curfew." He reminded her. Sam nodded. "Yeah, I know. I'll probably be home by ten…….since we're going to be spending a lot of time shopping for a birthday party Alyssa's throwing next week." She lied. Samantha felt absolutely terrible about her dirty deed but she had no choice. Aunt Pam looked at her suspiciously.

"Hon, isn't Alyssa's birthday in March?" she asked. Sam's eyes grew wide and she tried to think of some excuse to make up for her other lie. She regretted ever adding that last comment to her excuse. "Um………yeah. See, she's going to spend it with family in March, and she won't have time to spend it with us. So, since she's really excited with her birthday for some reason, she wants to have it super early with us so we won't miss it……….." she tried to say casually. 

Her aunt and uncle stared at each other again, and seemed to be exchanging thoughts with one another. Sam quickly regretted ever telling the lie, for it sounded so unbelievable. But her aunt and uncle seemed to buy it. "Ok." Her uncle said, shrugging once more. "But be home by ten, no later. Have fun dear." He said, smiling at his young niece. Sam nodded and gave a small sigh of relief and hurried up to her room. _'That was such a close call……..'_ she thought to herself as she quickly ran up the stairs to get ready for the big night.

****

As soon as the two senior whitelighters heard the upstairs door close, Artemis turned himself around in his chair to talk to Apolla. "She's lying about something. I can feel it. Where do you think she's going?" he asked her quietly, so that he was sure Sam wouldn't be able to hear. Apolla shrugged. "Does it look like I could read her mind??" 

"That's a power we desperately need. I think we should mention that at the next staff meeting……….." Artemis suggested jokingly. Apolla left her cooking on the counter and went over to the table. She punched Artemis slightly in his arm. "Jerk. We're not supposed to be joking about this. We're her guardians, and we're supposed to be protecting her and she could get herself into danger. We have to take precautions now Artemis. We can't afford to lose her. I can't afford to lose her." She whispered. 

Artemis laid a hand on Apolla's shoulder. "Yes……….I know. Don't worry. I'll try to talk to her. And……maybe I'll follow her. Or something like that." He said, unsure of his answer. Apolla nodded and sighed, staring at the crowded kitchen table in front of her. "You know…..I don't know what's gotten into that girl lately. She's gotten into so much trouble. Well, some times it's not her fault, but she just can't get away from all the trouble she's been in. Talk about a jinx." She said, snorting some. Artemis grinned at all the sarcasm and humor Apolla has been showing lately.

"Boy……….I need a vacation……." Apolla said with a sigh, rubbing her head hardly. "I'm getting a lot of headaches. I am getting old……" Artemis rolled his eyes. "I think being 167 years old has its side effects. Besides, I think you still look as radiant as the day I met you." He said, trying to comfort Apolla. Apolla smirked. "That's the nicest thing you've said in about 20 years……" she said jokingly. The two friends laughed, but it died after a few minutes. 

As the two were laughing, neither of them could sense the darklighter slowly peeking through the window. Spencer was standing right outside on their lawn right out the window. In his hand, he held the crystal that Arkon had given him. He held the crystal towards the two whitelighters he had sensed in this house. The crystal was shining brightly, and he could sense that these two whitelighters were exceptionally powerful. He could tell that these two were at least at the power level of 7. Arkon would be very proud when he got their souls. The one thing he wondered, was that why were the two living in a house like a normal married couple? Were they allowed? Did they know about this "up there"? Questions raced through the neurons of his brain.

A sudden sense made his senses go haywire. He suddenly sensed a strong, powerful power coming from someone in the house. He looked up, only to see the two whitelighters at the kitchen table, but he knew that such a great power couldn't be coming from them. '_It couldn't be coming from them, they are too weak……I can sense these whitelighter's powers from here…..and it's definitely not coming from them……well then where is it coming from?'_ he asked himself rhetorically. 

He turned around and looked behind him, just in case a being was walking down the sidewalk or if he sensed the vibe from some other house, but it didn't work. He felt it from this house and he needed to find out where this power was coming from. Suddenly, he caught the slightest movement at the corner of his eye. He looked through the window again, and saw the male whitelighter get up from his chair. He said something to the female whitelighter that made her get up also. They both started talking again, then walked over to the staircase and climbed the stairs. 

Spencer wondered where they were going, and by telling the look on their faces, it looked as if it were something serious. Was it something serious? He shrugged, and orbed out to a tree branch that was in front of a window that had a window view to the second floor. Through the window, he saw a teenage girl. And he sensed her power too. Spencer almost fell off his tree branch by the sudden power he had sensed. The level was off the charts and it was coming right from the girl.

__

"No……..this girl couldn't be the source of the power I was sensing. She is just a mere youth! Why would she have this much power??? HOW could she have this much power? This is just impossible. Her level is off the charts………" he observed as he stared at the girl. He took the crystal out of his front jacket pocket, and looked at it. The crystal was blinking like crazy, and it's light was shining so bright, that it was practically blinding him. With his wide-eyed shocked look, he quickly put the crystal back safely into his breast pocket so it wouldn't attract attention inside. He was amazed at the magical beings these days. Not only was the source powerful, but it was a mere child. 

He knew that he needed to get the power somehow. With hers and the TWO whitelighters combined, Arkon would be unstoppable. Arkon would also be proud of him, and he may be the first darklighter that would keep his head during the time of vocation to Arkon. He sighed, and fixed the tie on his neck and ran his hand through his ruffled blond hair. He would actually be able to live. He was mentally proud of himself for finding such power, and smiled at himself. He orbed out to get ready for his abduction tonight. He knew that advanced whitelighters like those two inside the house, knew how to fight back and he needed to plan.

He could tell that the two whitelighters cared about this young girl, and knew that they would stop at nothing to protect her. So the first plan came into his mind as soon as he discovered this thought. He would take out the whitelighters first.

****

Sam lay flat on her bed, staring at the cracks of the ceiling above her. Her memory brought her the look in her aunt and uncle's eyes as she told them where she was supposedly going for the night. The look of fear glimmered from their pupils. She was sick of it too. _"Geez, why do they have to be so worried? I'm going to be fine……they're always so overprotective."_ It has been like that since the day she was born. Sure they were good guardians, but they were always worried about her. 

__

"I'm just going to sneak into a club, I'm not going to kill anybody!" she screamed in her head. Ironically, she heard sudden footsteps outside her doorway. She turned to her side and sat up. She could see the two shadows from the crack underneath her door, and wondered what her guardians wanted out of her now. She sighed and the sudden knock on her door made her jump. Getting over her startled reaction she got up and opened the door. The two sweet people smiled as she peeked. 

"Yeah?" she asked in curiosity, opening the door widely. "Can we come in?" Aunt Pam said, stepping into her room. She shrugged and sat back on her bed. Uncle Art followed after her, and the two sat on her bed with her, one on each side. They could lightly feel the springs on their bottom, as they bounced up a bit. Aunt Pam put her arm around Sam. "Hey honey. How was your day?" she asked.

"It was fine." She said, staring at the carpet of her bedroom blankly. Artemis glanced back at Apolla. He gestured for her to continue on and Artemis nodded. "Honey……we just wanted to come…….talk to you for bit."

"About what?" she asked. Artemis cleared his throat and entered himself into the conversation. "You've been acting really different lately Sam……"

"Like how?" Sam said in her defense.

"Well……trouble at school……barely home……always out with your friend….and you always have these weird experiments in your room. It's like you never come talk to us anymore. It's like your aunt and I don't know who you are anymore."

"What do you mean??? Just because I don't come talk to you guys doesn't mean I'm different. I'm growing up, that's all. And I just like to keep things private. And I told you! I never started those things at school! They just…..came to me."

"But we're just really worried about you. We don't want you getting involved in something that's really dangerous or bad to you……." Her aunt replied.

"What, you think I'm taking drugs or something? Why can't you accept that I have a little privacy in my life!!! I'm a teenager! Not a criminal!" she said, her voice slowly rising in volume. She was up from the bed now, standing in front of her aunt and uncle.

"Look, we know what it's like to be teenagers. We know how hard it is……We went through the exact same thing at your age."

"No!!! You don't!!! You don't know how I feel! And no! You didn't go through the exact same thing when you were my age! I'm totally different! And I'm gonna say it again! Stop worrying about me! I'm fine! I'm just PERFECT! And don't even say you understand! Because you have no IDEA how hard it is for me!"

"Sam…….we're not your parents…….so-" 

"SO STOP PRETENDING TO BE!" Sam shouted at the two. There was a pause between them. A very long silence. Sam panted, looking at the eyes of the two. They now both looked really hurt at her last comment. Uncle Art just nodded and got up. Sam was too angry with them to sympathize and apologize. She was too blind to see the real hurt in her eyes. Only anger and frustration lingered around her. Her Aunt Pam followed her Uncle Art out the door. Uncle Art glanced back at Sam.

"Just call me whenever you're ready and…….I'll drive you there." He said in a soft, calm voice. Sam nodded and sighed, closing the door behind them. She leaned against the door and closed her eyes for a second, a little ashamed at what she had just done but decided that she had too much on her mind. She may have been harsh, but she was right. She walked over to her closet to pick something to wear for the night.

****

Sam walked down the stairs, her outfit exceptional to the fashion police and a light jacket on her shoulders. She never wore any makeup; she didn't really care about looking pretty. When she reached the bottom, she walked over to her uncle's office to tell him that she was ready. There, she saw her uncle, typing away on his computer. 

"Uncle Art?" she practically whispered to him. He was startled and turned around. He took off his glasses and put them on the table gently. "Yes dear?" he said.

"I'm ready to go……" she said, trying to forget about their little argument, but couldn't ignore the fact that she was still mad at them. He nodded, a smile no longer on his face. He grabbed his keys from the table and his jacket from the back of the chair. He then walked out of the front door, telling her that he would start up the car. She got her shoes on and just when she was about to open the door, she heard her aunt behind her. 

"You sure that that jacket is warm enough?" she asked, in a very soft tone. She shrugged. "Yeah it's ok." She said. Aunt Pam nodded and waved. "Have fun……." She said. Sam sighed and nodded while rolling her eyes. She opened the front door, and walked out of the house. 

Apolla sighed and walked back to the kitchen. She was really hurt at what Samantha had said earlier, but if that was how she felt, then she couldn't stop her. She walked over to the kitchen to finish setting the table when she suddenly got grabbed by the neck. Spencer had grabbed her and posted her against the wall. Apolla struggled against the darklighter, but he was too strong for her. She gasped as she was starting to choke slowly.

"Where's the girl?" he said, as he took out his crossbow, and aimed it at her neck. 

A/N: Sorry!! Sorry sorry sorry for leaving you all in the dark…..it was soooo totally my fault. Well…I finally got this up here so read and review!!!


	8. Close Behind

A/N: Well….8th chapter finally comes. Feedback is always nice…thanks to the people who have kept reviewing since the beginning. Well, his doesn't mean that I've stopped writing "A Given Chance" but sadly people…..its just so hard to continue that one….and its so easy to continue this one. But, it will finish someday….I'll try to work on it and try to finish it before January….but I'm not promising anything. So…..8th chapter…..here we go…

Summary: This is an A/U fic. What if the Elders never let Piper and Leo get married? What if they forbid them from having any kind of relationship? And they followed the rules, except that Piper still got pregnant. So what if their daughter had the exact same story Paige had? Piper and Leo had to give their powerful daughter away to another family...and they were never the same.……time passes by, and a chain of events….leads Piper's daughter and the Halliwells to   
another exciting, and emotional adventure.

Disclaimer: I do not own the show or any of the characters, except for some that you don't recognize

  
**Separation- _Chapter 8_**

Paige drove up to the front sidewalk of their manor, that she and her sisters have shared over the years. She parked up in front with the old Volkswagen that she had had since college, and stopped the car. She got out of the car, and walked up the stairs to her home. In her hand, she held a big, gargantuan file, which was labeled "Samantha M. Fielding". She was going to research this tonight, and she was going to find out who this girl exactly was. As she turned the knob of the front door, all was quiet inside. She crept inside the house, closing the door behind her and hanging her thin coat up on the hooks to her left. 

She walked to the kitchen, her footsteps echoing through the empty rooms. As she got to her destination, the kitchen was dark, but she could see a shadow sitting at the kitchen table with a mug and a bunch of papers in front of her. Her eyes were closed, and her glasses were hanging down her chest, attached to the string that held them around her neck. From what Paige could hear, she was slumbering. Paige walked over to the light switch, and turned the lights on.

The slumbering sister jerked awake, surprised that she had fallen asleep, but then wishing she had stayed asleep for she longed for the wonderful dream she had. She rubbed her eyes, and tried to get used to the sudden brightness in the room. She glanced at the junk in front of her, and then to her sister who was staring at her in a peculiar way. 

"Phoebe? What the heck? Were you here all day?" Paige asked in a surprised tone. She put down her files on the kitchen table, and pulled out a chair so she would be sitting diagonally from Phoebe. Phoebe thought for a moment in silence. It seemed that she was thinking about a response to the non-rhetorical question. She finally got the memory of her day in her mind, and   
shook her head. 

"Nah……No. This morning, Piper stayed up in her room, while I stayed here, and……just worked. Then, a little after………" she glanced at her watch, and then calculated the time in her head. "3, it got a little dark and gloomy, and I just fell asleep here at the table." She said with a sigh following after her reply. Paige leaned on her elbow on the table, and sighed along with her older sister. "Piper………god. I hate it that we can't help her at all from what she had been feeling for the last decade or so."

Phoebe nodded in agreement. "Well, I don't think she can ever recover from the pain she had to experience the day we were at that church. I've never seen that look in Piper's eyes before…….it was so, different."

"Too bad there's no potion I can batch up for her…….to make her feel better for all this. Or to kill those damn elders that caused her all that pain. I hate them Phoebe…….they hurt my sister, and they don't even know it. They're freaking selfish up there. That's what they are." Paige said in a very angry tone. Phoebe nodded once more.

"We all feel the same way…….." she said, drifting off to another world in her head. She stared at all the letters in front of her, and thought about her dream that she had just experienced less than 60 seconds ago. "Phoebe? What's wrong?" Paige asked, noticing her sister was totally out of it. 

__

"I love you Phoebe. And I was never evil. We can live happily ever after, after all. Nothing will stop me from loving you, and I will always be there for you…… I love you, I love you, I love you forever."

The dark and deep voice rang in her head over and over as she imaged the young, handsome man standing in front of her, grasping her by her shoulders as she was face to face, eye to eye with the man she had truly loved once upon a time. "Cole……" she whispered as she remembered his sweet kiss he had given her during that dream. She wished it was true, and she wished it was   
real.

"Huh?" Paige asked in confusion. Phoebe suddenly looked up and realized what she had said out loud accidentally. She covered her mouth, and regretted ever saying his name. "What about Cole?" Paige asked again, confusion still lingering in her tone. "Were you thinking about him just now?"

Phoebe nodded and felt the guilt rising in her. For the past years, she had been rejecting him, telling him the negativity of their relationship, and telling her sisters about how idiotic he had been to actually think we wanted to be together and how he thought that she still loved him and wanted to be with him. She had denied it most of her life, and here she was thinking about   
him. Phoebe shrugged. "Yeah……..I guess. I really don't know why…….he just sort of came to me in my dream."

"I thought that you couldn't care less about him anymore."

Phoebe sighed and suddenly felt regret in ever doubting Cole, and regretted how much pain she had caused him. "Well…….of course I still care, I mean he was my husband. And…..I DID care about him….once upon a time…..and I don't know what came over me….just a stupid silly mistake…….I-"

"I think you still love him. I could see it in your eyes sis. Don't try to deny it. I've been seeing it for the past years, and you know it's true. Just stop denying and if he really is the man you love, and the man you want to be with, then I just can't see what's stopping you."

"It's not really that easy Paige. And maybe I do still loved him, but it still doesn't change the fact that we tried to kill us all, and he tricked us with his lies and his deceit."

"He was possessed by the source for pete's sake! Come on, you know that wasn't him."

"He is a demon, and will always be a demon."

"Please Phoebe. I really have to take Cole's side on this. Sure, that was his past, but it's really time to forgive. He sacrificed so much for you……and I think that you were kind of selfish dissing him so rudely like that…..I mean you have to give him some credit, his soul stayed alive in the wasteland for you for christ's sake."

Phoebe sighed. Paige stayed silent until they heard footsteps coming toward their direction. The two sisters looked up and saw their oldest sister walking into the kitchen, dressed and ready to go somewhere yet her eyes were still tear stained and the circles under her eyes stayed stamped on her face. Phoebe immediately dropped the subject of her ex-husband and went to Piper. "Where are you going tonight?"

Piper shrugged and grabbed her keys from the key hook by the back door. "The club. It's Friday night….so…..more customers, and I have to watch the band, and I guess I'll take bar duty tonight." She said, her voice still groggy. Phoebe and Paige stared at her like she was a different life form. Piper noticed it and gave them the deathly stare back. "What? What did I do? Why are you guys staring?" she asked. Phoebe shook her head and went back to her cup of steaming coffee. Paige kept staring at her, but then something popped up in her mind and then she glanced at the big file that was right next to her arm. _'There's hope. If Samantha is the Samantha I think she is……then Piper……"_ she thought of how her sister would change if their long lost niece suddenly popped back into their lives. It would be happier. Much happier.

Piper shook her head in disgust and rolled her eyes. That was another change in her since she gave up her daughter. She became bitter. Totally bitter. Like an old lady. But it's not like Paige or Phoebe could say anything. They really had no right to. They didn't know what Piper was feeling everyday, and they had no idea what she was being put through. "I'll be home……hell, I don't know when I'll be home. See you." She said as she stomped out the back door and slammed it. Phoebe and Paige stayed in silent until they heard their garage door open and the car speed out of the garage. 

Paige took a deep breath and stood up from her seat. "That's it. I can't take this anymore." She said sternly. She got up from her chair and quickly put on her light jacket. Then, she grabbed the big file and ran to get her keys from the hooks. Phoebe, startled by her sudden comment and moves stood up. "What? What the heck? Where are you going???" she asked following her in her steps. Paige swung her coat over her shoulders and she stuffed the gigantic file under her arm. "Don't worry Phoebe…..I'm going to fix this. I have a way to put us all back together. Everything's going to get better……I promise." She said bravely, before she stomped out the door to her car. Phoebe's peculiar look followed Paige as she walked out the door. Phoebe then shrugged and went back to the kitchen table and opened her laptop to start typing away. _'Paige is always up to stunts like this. Who knows if this one will be any more special.'_ She thought.

Phoebe had no idea.

****

The GMC Yukon Suburban drove up the road entrance to the mall. Sam sat in the front seat staring out the window, trying to avoid eye contact with her uncle. Uncle Art just kept his eyes on the road and his hands gripped on the steering wheel. They were silent the whole road trip there. He didn't even turn on the radio, so it was pure silence besides the crazy everyday San Francisco drivers who were honking away on the street because some bozo crashed into a pole. He stopped at the entrance. They both could see that the mall was crowded and bunches of people were going in and out the revolving doors of the shopping center. Sam gave a big sigh and turned to Uncle Art. "I guess…..I'll be home around 10:30?" she said, questioning her curfew. 

Uncle Art hesitated for a minute but then exhaled. "Yes….sure. Do you want me to pick you up somewhere?" he asked, facing her now and they were eye to eye. Sam shook her head. "No….Karis's mom could drive me home. It should be no problem." She said quietly. There was a long pause between the both of them. Artemis not knowing to say since the argument. He reached into his back pocket and pulled out an old, torn up, black leather wallet. He pulled out a 50 dollar bill. Sam's eyes widened at the sight of the big amount in U.S. currency. "Wow…..Uncle Art…..that's a lot of money." She said as she remembered her thoughts earlier in the day about the jobs that her guardians had.

"Get your friends something to eat or whatever you want. Consider this something like a deduction from your birthday present?" he said, trying to smiled a little. Sam gave a small laugh and took the bill. "Thanks Uncle Art." She said. There was another long pause between them. Sam was unsure what she should do. They had just had an argument and she knew she hurt them a little so she wasn't sure if she should give him a hug or what. Something inside of her told her that she needed to give him some recognition. She gave him a small peck on the cheek. "I'll see you tonight." She said as she opened the car door and jumped out. 

Artemis smiled at the sudden kiss and watched Sam run through the revolving doors until she was out of sight. He put the car into drive and went looking for a parking space. If she thought that they would actually leave her alone to do something by herself and her friends with no supervision at all in this cold, dark world, then she totally misunderstood her guardian angels.

****

Spencer hit Apolla's face with his hand. "WHERE IS SHE???" he screamed again and again. The loud voice rang around Apolla's ears. She had been getting hurt and beaten for the last half hour. "Go to…..hell….." she said slowly, as she took deep breaths. Her face was bruised up, a yellow-black eye and a bloody lip as Spencer took no mercy on the white lighter. "You don't seem to understand me you white lighter!!!" he said again, his Australian accent showing through his speech. He held her by her shirt collar and slammed her against the wall. "I want that girl…..and if you don't tell me where she is….then I'm going to have to force it out of you….." he whispered to her face.

Apolla glared at him with beady eyes and used some strength to spit a slimy ball of saliva in his face. "Looks like we're going to be here forever then, cause I ain't never going to tell you." She whispered back. Then Spencer felt her getting lighter and lighter in his hands and she started to glow brighter and brighter until she dematerialized into swirling blue and white lights. He looked at his empty palms. "Ah!!" he screamed. He felt a tap on his back behind him. He whirled around and saw Apolla behind him.

"That's right. You should scream." She said before she lifted her leg quickly and slammed it in his abdomen. "I didn't take tae kwon do in Hong Kong for 5 years just for fun you know.…" she said sarcastically as he backed into the wall by the hard kick. She lifted her leg higher and swiped her leg across his cheek, making his jaw sour. Spencer bent down and adjusted his jaw. He then looked up at Apolla and had an evil look in his eyes. "I'm going to get you white lighter." He whispered. 

Spencer than ran at her with his fists, swinging at her every chance he got. Apolla avoided them by moving her head side to side and ducked whenever she needed to. But when she ran out of room to back away, Spencer had her trapped at a wall again. He swung at her with his strong fists and it hit her right in the cheek. Her vision spun as the blow affected her jaw as well. Spencer was about to take another shot at her again when she regained her strength and ducked right out of the way to give him a swift kick in the shins. That made Spencer back away from her to regain his strength and to get over the pounding pain she caused him. 

As he stood there, blood all over the bottom of his nostrils and his hands rubbing the bottom of his knees in a constant manner, Apolla looked as if she were going to tackle him down. Spencer stood up from his knees and he spread his feet out a bit, getting ready for her. He lifted his arms and used his two fingers to gesture her towards him. "Come on. Give me the best you got."

****

Sam ran into the mall entrance quickly. She turned around and looked if her uncle had left and when she saw that he indeed did, she walked back outside in the bitter cold to wait for her three friends. It seemed like forever until Karis, Alyssa and Holly and come. They were all dressed fancy, with skirts that went past her knees or leather pants and they each wore makeup. Karis seemed to frown once she set her eyes on Sam's attire. "You're wearing THAT? This could be the biggest and funnest night of our lives, and you're wearing casual pants with nearly sleeve less top. Geez Sam….you should have come over my house if you had nothing to wear!!" she said with a laugh.

Sam rolled her eyes as her friend criticized her outfit. "I just wanted to feel comfortable. That's all. Besides, if we have to run, you guys will be less fortunate since you have to run in those high heels." She said, feeling proud of her comeback. Holly gave a small laugh and Alyssa grinned. Karis rolled her eyes and put her arm around Sam. 

"We ready to go?" she asked, turning her head to glance at all of her three friends.

"Ready!!"

"Ready!"

Sam paused for a minute, thinking twice about their upcoming stunt. The guilt and worry rose up in her again, but when she glanced at her friend's faces, she decided to put it all in the back of her mind. She gulped her saliva down, and gave a solemn smile. "Ready." She said at last. All four friends smiled and laughed as they started their 3 block walk to P3. Artemis stayed close behind, following them and watching their every move.

__

'Sam…..where are you going?'

****

To be continued…..stay tuned for chapter 9 of "Seperation."
    
    A/N: I hope you liked this chapter and I hope you review!! Thanks!


	9. Party Time

A/N: Another chapter has come!! I'm really glad I had a lot of positive feedback on the last chapter. You guys…really make my day. Just know that I'm really thankful to have people who like my story….and I'm thankful that if I have a bad day….I can just click on my reviews and It would really make me feel better. Thank you!! All of you! So…I spent some time on Chapter 9….here we go!

Summary: This is an A/U fic. What if the Elders never let Piper and Leo get married? What if they forbid them from having any kind of relationship? And they followed the rules, except that Piper still got pregnant. So what if their daughter had the exact same story Paige had? Piper and Leo had to give their powerful daughter away to another family...and they were never the same.……time passes by, and a chain of events….leads Piper's daughter and the Halliwells to another exciting, and emotional adventure.

Disclaimer: I do not own the show or any of the characters, except for some that you don't recognize

****

Separation- _Chapter 9_

As the music followed its own beat and the people were swinging their hips to the groove, Piper stood behind the bar counter, bored as a minor in a classroom would be. She leaned on her elbow on the counter, while people surrounded her, drinking and dancing and socializing. She really had no care for them, and thought all of them were stupid little idiots for thinking of spending their money on this stupid club when they could be using it for something else. _'Oh well….money is money….and I guess I'm making lots of it from these idiotic civilians.' _She thought, and gave herself a small laugh at the comment. 

"Hey miss? You happen to stock Budweiser at this here club? I haven't sipped one in ages….Good lord!" the western based man said. She laughed inside at his stupid white cowboy hat, something someone would wear in a black and white John Wayne movie. Three gold teeth shone from his smile and it looked like he didn't get a chance to shave that morning either. But he was a customer. And a clubber kind of person, apparently. Who the hell cares anymore. "Yeah….that'll be $7.99 a bottle sir." She said awfully loudly, since she could barely here over the music and the constant jabbering of the crowd. 

"Woweee! That's a mighty cheap price miss….glad I came here tonight!!! I'll take three icy cold ones!!" he said like a dog when he gets a treat. Piper lifted an eyebrow and stared at him for a minute. "Yeah…ummm it's no problem." She said sarcastically as she opened the cooler hidden under the counter and took out three wet, and cold beer bottles for the man to have. "That'll be 23.97 sir." She said loudly once more, her hand held out, ready for the money to land on her palm. The man dug in his pants a little, and it seemed he was searching for his money.

__

'Ohhhh no…you're not going to use the 'I seem to have lost my wallet' trick bucko…..' she thought, quickly assuming that the man was pure broke, judging my his attire and his western accent. But the next event proved her wrong, as he finally pulled out a crumpled one hundred dollar bill out of his pocket and slammed it down on the counter. Piper was startled, since his slam made an awful loud noise and it shook the counters of the bar. One person's drink even spilled a bit, but with the girl he was talking to, he didn't seem to mind or notice. Piper sighed as another thing she assumed was wrong and took the bill to the cashier in the middle. She brought out the change and handed it to the man.

The man had already broken the bottle cap off with his teeth and had started to chug all the beer down. "WOOOO doggie!!! That is mighty tasty there!!! Ow ow owwwww!!!" he said, yelping like a dog. Piper shook her head in embarrassment and covered her eyes with her hand. _'The people in San Francisco these days…..they all came out of the mental asylum for pity's sake!!'_ she thought, still shaking her head. She looked up at the ragged man and roller her eyes. "Your welcome." She spat out at him, as she went back to her work. But the cowboy seemed to stick around.

"Say there little lady….you look mighty fine….this music sure is great! Care to dance???" he said, still chugging the second of his three beers down. Piper paused and stared at the man again, this time instead of embarrassment, she stared at him with disgust. "Look MR. PECOS BILL. If you know what's good for your 'doggies', then I suggest you get away from me this instant before I take a freaking lasso and whip you into the wall!!!" she screamed at him. His eyes widened and his hands went up in his defense. "Ok missy…..I know when not to deal with a toughie chick. Had one as a second wife myself!!!" he grinned. Piper rolled her eyes once more as he backed away from the counter with his beer bottles and went to find some other woman he would rodeo dance with. 

She sighed as she got another perverted person away from her because he was hitting on her. It made her feel cold and bitter to know that she could have been happily married, with a beautiful daughter and not to mention a ring as a symbol that she was taken. She only had one true love, and that was Leo. She recognized the spot that she was standing in. Almost fourteen years ago…..she stood in this same exact spot in the exact same position, waiting for her love to come and tell her the news about their status "up there". Of course, that only ended in heartbreak. She turned around to look at their couch right under the stairs. 

It was their little loveseat. It was there that on nights she had to work at the club, all she had to do was snuggle up with Leo and he would make all the stress and pain go away. Of course, that only ended up in heartbreak too, since she had no one by her side now. No one to keep her warm through this endless snow storm. "Up there" had taken it all away from her. She only wished that she had a little girl to keep her company……to remind her of her father everyday, and to see her beauty and laughter in the morning when she woke her up for school. She needed someone, but instead, she ended up with no one. She only wished and prayed that things would get better, that suddenly Leo would show up and suggested that they run away and elope, while shortly after they get married, they can get their daughter back, while they could live in a happy family scenario away from the elders, away from demons, away from any other pressures in her life. But she realized that it was only a simple prayer, and usually in the Halliwell family, no matter how much you tried, prayers just don't work.

She snapped out of her fanaticizing and turned back to the club. She reminded herself that she also had to keep an eye out for suspicious looking people. Several times, minors had been sneaking in without her knowing, and she hadn't of caught one yet. She needed to keep a close watch tonight, since she didn't want kids to get away with sneaking into P3 illegally. 

****

Alyssa, Karis, Sam and Holly stood in front of the club, with it's neon lighted sign, and the hundreds of people lined outside it's entrance. "Wow…..I didn't think it would be THIS packed….." Karis said in amazement. 

"It's Friday night idiot…..of course it's packed. Well….better for us. At least there are people to cover us so there's a very low chance that we would get caught! You know…that guy over there is HOT!" Alyssa said with a smile. Sam rolled her eyes at her friend's immaturity. "Whatever…let's just get in already…" she said, wanting to get the whole thing over with. Holly stood silent the whole way. Karis giggled in excitement. "Ok you guys…..it's around the back, through the alley right here…." She said, walking through the giant crowds of people over to the side of the club. Alyssa followed Karis quickly, but Holly and Sam seemed to hesitate their every step of the way. 

Finally they entered the well-lit alley, where all the garbage cans stood. They walked in a line as Karis leaded the way to the middle of the alley, where there was a door that stated it was the back entrance to P3. Alyssa, Holly and Sam silently stood back while Karis walked up to the door and lightly knocked on the door, in a particular pattern. After, she stood back along with her friends. It was like they were in an Indiana Jones movie, and right now they were opening a secret cave. They waited a few seconds, when a big, muscular Caucasian man opened the door slightly and stuck his head out and looked around the alley. He finally spotted the four teenagers.

"Yo…what chu want?" he said, showing his ghetto speech. Karis rolled her eyes and stood up to him. "Yo yourself. I'm with Mario. He told you we'd be here didn't he?" she said sternly. The guy lifted an eyebrow. "He'd didn't say nothing about little teeny toddlers." He said, checking all four girls and their appearance.

"Well who cares! I'm with Mario and if you don't believe me, then you could go call him on his cell and disturb him in his work and he'll send 'boys' after you. You know what I'm saying?" Karis said, showing some ghetto talk of her own. The man gave a big sigh and opened the door fully. Sam glared at Karis. She knew her family had connections, but by the way they were talking, it sounded like her father was a big important boss of the Mafia. He walked outside, in his huge black shirt and jeans. In his hand, he held a metal detector. "Hey….I gotta check you girls. Club rules." He said. "I can't have you girls shooting a rampage inside can I? Boss would kill me…" 

The girls just shrugged, since they really had nothing to hide. He checked each one of them, and it only took a matter of minutes. Of course, Alyssa took a little long than the rest of them from all the jewelry she had on. They finally were done, and the guard led them through the entrance. "Okay….you go out there, and keep yourselves covered. Boss is on watch tonight cuz I've been doing this crap for Mario a lot. Letting these dumb minors in. You get caught, you don't know who I am….and you don't know how the hell you got through this door. And if you have to blame it on someone, blame it on a guy named Leon. He paused and glared at the front entrance where another guy that looked a lot like him, only more hair, stood and as he glanced at him, he snickered. 

"Okay….okay….you got everything? Good…..now go do, whatever it is you girls wanna do……Just get away from me. I can't get caught sneaking you in here got it?" he said, as he walked back to the back at his post. Karis and Alyssa giggled in excitement. "Oh my gosh you guys!!! We're actually in P3!!! Hear the music??" Alyssa said excitedly as they walked through some minor halls until they finally reached the main room. A loud burst of music soared through their ears as the they saw a wonderous site. People, dancing and socializing with each other. A band rocking out on the stage. It was heaven to Alyssa and Karis. Of course to Sam and Holly, they weren't so sure if they wanted to stay anymore.

"You guys……I'm not so sure we should be doing this anymore….." Holly screamed over to them since the music was deafening their ears. 

"Oh come on Holly! Don't chicken out now!!! This is it! We're actually in!!! Let's go have some fun!!!" Alyssa shouted as she and Karis made their way through the crowd. "Where the heck are they going?" Sam screamed to Holly. Holly just shrugged but then followed Alyssa and Karis closely, with her fear of losing them and getting caught. They finally stopped walking when they reached four guys. Sam recognized them from the senior football team. She glared at Alyssa. She pulled Alyssa over to her and whispered in her ear. "You never told me we'd be meeting guys here."

"Come ON Sam!!! Tyler, Richard, Bobby and Arnold from the football team!!! Why do you think we came on the first place? You didn't think we'd be here on our own did you?" she said with a smile. But Sam was in no mood to joke.

"Lis….." she said worried, using her friend's nickname. "I have a bad feeling about this ok?" 

"Sam….come on. There's no need to worry. These guys are huge and they could pass easily for adults…..so we wouldn't get caught right away! It'll be fine….besides, I heard Arnold thinks you're kind of cute! It'll be fine. Tell you what, we'll leave early then ok? At least an hour here and then we can go." She said, looking into Sam's eyes. Sam sighed and gave up. "Yeah…..yeah….." 

Alyssa giggled and went over with Holly and Karis to look at the guys. Alyssa went straight to Tyler, Holly went to Bobby and Karis hooked up with Richard. It was sort of ironic because these guys were the guys they've each had a crush on every since freshman year. Sam blushed as Arnold walked over to her. He held out his hand that was stuffed in his pocket and smiled. "Hey Sam." He said. Sam blushed even more, taking his hand and shaking it. He was an honest to god good guy, with dark brown spiky hair, and was tall and muscular, just like your average quarterback from the football team. 

"Hi." Sam said shyly as they shook hands. He smiled as he saw the redness in her face. "So….what' up?" he asked. Sam merely shrugged. "Nothing much…..have you been here before?"

Arnold shook his head. "Nah…..the other guys have….but I'm here for a first." He said, looking around the place. Sam nodded and smiled again. Arnold turned back to her. "Hey…..you wanna dance?" he asked, holding his hand out. She hesitated for a minute and looked around to her friends. It turned out that they were already at the dance floor. She took his hand and nodded slowly. "Sure…" she said, as he took her wrist and dragged her to the dance floor. The music was flowing with their moves. Sam seemed to dance in perfect rhythm as her body matched the tempo of the song. Arnold danced along with her, admiring her dancing and her beauty. 

****

A heavy arm was thrown over her shoulders and tightened around Apolla's neck Spencer held her neck tighter and tighter until he could hear her gag. Apolla clenched her teeth and gathered her strength to bury her elbow in his solar plexus. As Spencer staggered backward and sucked for air, she turned on him indignantly. "Argh…..you jerk….." she said, rubbing her neck in the sore places. 

Spencer recovered from his injuries and tried to run at her again. Apolla felt strong and confident about this battle and she believed she was going to win, judging from her past fights with darklighters. She let him come at her. _'Might as well get a shred of a workout'_ she thought as he barreled towards her. As he got close, reversed his momentum with a fast knee strike and finished him off with a front kick. 

He lay sprawled in a half-conscious pile and a smile flickered over her face. She bent down to him and looked at his face sympathetically. "Oh… look who got his ass kicked by a girl!!" she said, all giggly and stood up from him. She was startled by his next move. His eyes jerked open and his hand grabbed her ankle. She gave a little gasp before she hit the floor on her back. She could hear Spencer laughing as he got up from his back. Apolla clenched her teeth and was sore from the sudden fall. She rubbed the back of her neck for her head was spinning and was a little dizzy. The next blow to her face that Spencer gave didn't exactly improve her condition.

Apolla's head jerked to the right as Spencer's fist buried into her cheek. He then grabbed her by the neck once more, pulling up from her lying position and holding her up against the wall. He laughed as he stared at her helpless face. "Please…..you whitelighters are always so ignorant." He said, smirking once more. Apolla gagged through her choking. Spencer held her neck tightly, his big palm wrapped around her neck. Apolla wouldn't give up. She once again gathered her strength together to lift up her right leg and kick him in his…….well, his private place. 

Spencer backed away, startled by the sudden pain. "Bitch…" he spat at her as he gasped for air. Apolla was breathing heavily, savoring the feeling of air going through her weakened lungs. She gave him a deathly stare and ran at him to give him a spinning kick in the face. He fell on the floor, right on his chin as he fell flat on his chest. It seemed to Apolla that he was finally knocked out. She sighed and closed her eyes, mentally complementing herself on winning a good fight. She turned around to run and get Artemis to help and to warn him of the darklighter, when a sudden sharp pain went through her.

It turned out, that Spencer recovered from his aches and pains quite quickly. He still laid on the floor, but his arm was spread out to Apolla, with the crossbow gripped tightly in his hand. The arrow had just entered into Apolla's stomach. Apolla paused and looked down at the crimson colored blood spreading slowly throughout her shirt. She gave a gasp, before she just collapsed to the floor. "Ha ha ha ha…." Spencer laughed in pity. He watched her back away slowly, crawling to lean against the wall, as she held her stomach tightly. She reached the wall, and leaned against it, slightly tilting her head and closing her eyes, trying to deal with the pain.

"Oh….the whitelighter got proved wrong….and lost to a darklighter. I could tell that you've been around for a while whitelighter….but I guess you were bound to die sometime. I'll just take your power to hand to Arkon….and soon, your companion whitelighter will come, where he will die at my hand as well. And as the uncle comes crawling back to you….then the girl will have to follow sometime, and all of your powers, will be mine." He said as he laughed more. Apolla's breathing was now ragged and she closed her eyes tight. "Sam……" she let out as a mere exhale. 

She then silently wished and prayed in her mind, that Artemis wouldn't feel her pains and wouldn't come back home. But she knew that all whitelighter partners always shared the same pain, and emotion…..as if they were each other's charges. And she knew that Artemis will if not already feel the pains of the darklighter's arrow and poison spreading through her body. It was hopeless now. 

****

Artemis watched as his charge danced with a senior from her high school. Suddenly an urge of fatherly instincts took over him. _'What in the name of…..what is she doing dancing with that man? Why is she here anyway…..Oh Sam……you've really done it this time haven't you…..'_ he thought as he shook his head slowly. He had followed the girls to the club and watched them go through the back entrance. He felt a little hurt by her lies and deceit. But she knew it was probably not all her fault. He knew the all the peer pressure she was going through at school, with all her friends, so what could he do?

__

'But what she did was still wrong….. that girl…..' he thought once more. Once the girls had been checked and walked in, he sneaked way in to the back of the alley where no one would see, and he orbed into the men's bathroom of the club. He walked out of the stall casually, and walked out of the bathroom. He searched through the hundreds of heads that occupied the club and when he finally found them, he found them with guys. 

Of course he was going to go get them out of that club. If the owner found those four, then they could get arrested or worse, he and Apolla might have to take the blame. Something caused his eye. He wasn't really paying attention to the name of the club, just watching the four girls. But then he saw a big neon lighted sign on one of the walls. _P3_. _"Oh god….this is….Piper's club. This is her mother's club. I can't let them see her….oh lord….'_ He thought as he thought of the newfound panic. 

He hurried through the crowds of people, trying desperately to reach Samantha. He was within feet of her, when a sudden sharp pain made him stop and gasp in pain. "Ahhhh…." He gasped as he clutched his abdomen tightly. The pain was so overwhelming and it was like he couldn't stand anymore. He suddenly realized what was happening. "Oh god….Apolla….." he said, worried that Apolla had been attacked. He prayed that it was something else, but he couldn't ignore the aching pain inside of him. He backed away from everyone, and decided he would have to go to Apolla first and Sam later.

Still clutching his stomach, he slowly made his way to the bathroom. He pushed the door open, and luckily nobody was in the washroom. The pain was so severe, he screamed every now and then, and he fell to the floor. He breathed very heavily and crawled to the wall where he lightly leaned on it. "Apolla…" he said again, dematerializing in blue and white shiny lights. 

**__**

To be continued……stay tuned for chapter 10 of "Seperation." 
    
    A/N: Thanks again reviewers!! And I hope you review this chapter! I hope you don't mind the suspense and the mild cliffhanger. Hehehehe. There will most likely be another chapter up tomorrow night or on Saturday. Thanks again! Please read and review!!!

Oh wait! One more thing before I leave this author's note alone……I did this with my other story, and it helped me a lot. I'm going to do a character poll for this story. Can you please leave a review telling your favorite character (along with your comment of course). It really tells me what kind of characters the readers like. But, I mean….only choose from the ones I created. Not the already made ones. I'll name them right now. 

Pick between:

Sam, Apolla, Artemis, Spencer, Arkon, Karis, Alyssa, Holly, Arnold, or you can even vote for the minor characters! Like, ummm, Ms. Rowland, the nun, the western man, the security guard, ummm there's many more. Please do me a favor and vote? Thank you so much!!! Hope you liked the chapter!!!! Read, Review and Vote!!!


	10. Hello and Goodbye

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A/N: O_o another chapter has come….and yes I have something to say. I'M SORRY. Yes….CF12 gave me a kick in the head and made me realize what I was doing. I'M SORRY. I had no idea that I was holding it this long…….ehhh I thought that I had to put all those details in and I didn't want to bore the audience with long chapters. I'M SORRY. I should have made the story shorter…and now I PROMISE you this shall be the chapter that Sam recognizes the person glaring at her in the eye…Piper. I'M SOOO SORRY. Thank you CF12. Thank you reviewers. Again…geez I'M REALLY REALLY SORRY!

****

Summary: This is an A/U fic. What if the Elders never let Piper and Leo get married? What if they forbid them from having any kind of relationship? And they followed the rules, except that Piper still got pregnant. So what if their daughter had the exact same story Paige had? Piper and Leo had to give their powerful daughter away to another family...and they were never the same.……time passes by, and a chain of events….leads Piper's daughter and the Halliwells to another exciting, and emotional adventure.

****

Disclaimer: I do not own the show or any of the characters, except for some that you don't recognize

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Separation- _Chapter 10_

Artemis collapsed on their hall floor. He clutched his heart, just like he was in the position that he orbed out from. He clenched his teeth in pain as he tried to whisper his beloved partner's name. "_Apolla…….Apolla_….." he whispered. His breathing was already ragged from all the aches he had been feeling from the senses he'd been getting from Apolla. He gathered all his strength together to weakly walk the few steps to the kitchen. The whole house was pitch black except for the one weak bulb in the middle of the kitchen hanging above the center table. He looked all around for Apolla, looking to see where she was.

His pains were getting weaker, but he kept worrying because it could only mean one of two things. One: Apolla was getting better, or was getting healed and the pain was going away. Or two: she was close to dying. He hurried as fast as he could and then fell on all fours when he got to the kitchen. He looked all around him, crawling and searching for Apolla. He heard one little slight groan to his left. He turned to the direction and gasped when he saw the sight in front of him. Apolla was lying against the wall, arrow buried in the flesh of her abdomen, blood spreading all over the floor.

"APOLLA!" Artemis exclaimed, his strength coming back to him as he hurried to her side. He took her hand and squeezed it. "Apolla? Apolla….." he whispered again and again. Apolla gasped slightly and then opened her eyes to turn to Artemis. "Arty…" she whispered, her voice sounding weak. Artemis laid a hand over her mouth. "Shhhh…don't speak. You're already weak. I'll heal you….no need to worry……" he whispered, almost in tears. He got up for a slight second, and ripped part of his shirt off. He took the piece of cloth and wrapped it around his hand, then with the covering, wrapped his hand around the body of the arrow. He needed protection, since darklighter poison was hazardous to him too. 

"This is going to hurt a little….." he whispered. He took a deep breath, and pulled the arrow out as fast as he could. Apolla let out a shriek, feeling the terrible pain of the pulling. Artemis threw the arrow away as soon as he pulled it out of her. He held his hands over the wound and his hands started to glow brightly. He concentrated as hard as he could but try as he might, the wound would not heal. He kept on trying to heal her for the next few minutes, until Apolla lifted her hand and pushed his away from her. 

"Artemis…..it's…….too late for…….me now…….." she whispered in a soft voice, breathing between every group of words. Artemis shook his head in denial, and didn't accept that she wasn't healing. "No…Apolla no. It's not your time….you can't leave me……not yet……" he said, his voice breaking down slowly. Apolla gave a small laugh. "Arty……you know that we seniors…..always know when it's someone's time…..and I can feel that it's mine….and I know you…..can feel it too." She said weakly. Artemis closed his eyes tight, squeezed her hand and held it tightly to his forehead while his tears poured out. 

"It's not funny to me….."

"I know honey……I know….."

"I don't want to lose you…..you were the best friend I ever had…I love you Apolla….."

"You know I love you just as well…..but….it's…my destiny….."

Artemis couldn't talk through his tears. He kept silent and Apolla could hear his tears. She squeezed Artemis's hand back and took a deep breath. Artemis got over his grief and had an angry look on his face when he faced Apolla again. "Who did this……WHO did it?" he said vigorously. Apolla's eyes went back to worry and she took more deep breaths. "Darklighter….after…..Sam." she said. Artemis's senses suddenly went back up. "Sam? What…..I ….who….." he had so many questions in his mind from the sudden info.

"Darklighter….wants her power…..wants….power……"

"Who was it?"

"Don't know…..he attacked. I……you have to protect her Artemis……he's after her….he could kill her."

"But he won't sense her….he can't. And as long as I'm standing he'll never know….."

"Artemis. The binding spell…….it works only on the two of us. If….When I……pass…..her witch powers will come back…..and darklighter…will…..unh…." Apolla stopped, her feeling the urge to just let go of her life. "You have to save her." She said finally. Artemis nodded and kissed her hand once more. "I can't imagine living without…..you." 

"Oh don't worry Arty. Looks like you two will be in heaven together soon enough!" a voice said suddenly behind the both of them. Artemis sat up suddenly, startled by the sudden voice. He whirled around and saw the chin-long dirty blonde with the nearly shaved beard and the Australian accent. His eyes suddenly went cold as he saw the darklighter heading towards him. "You….sick bastard……" he whispered. He glanced to Apolla and saw her chest rising and falling, the speed getting slower and slower. "You did this to her……"

"Oh Artemis….Artemis. What did your parents tell you about bad language? Never got taught eh? Well maybe you should say hello to them in the afterlife, since that's where you're going after I'm done oh well….stealing your power and killing both you and the woman." Spencer said while laughing his head off. Artemis just glared at him for the longest time. "You'll pay." He said quietly. Spencer laughed even more. "Oh just wait." 

Spencer then made the crystal appear in his hand. Artemis was shocked by the sudden appearance. The crystal was blinking and shining brightly. "Ahhh yes…power level 8's…..I love hunting for the seniors. They're so easy to get." He said. Artemis was now wanting to tear the darklighter's head off. He was startled by Spencer's next move. Spencer then threw the crystal in the air and then caught it. He shot his arm out and held the crystal towards Apolla. Artemis's eyes widened as he saw the horrible move Spencer had made. A light came from Apolla and she gasped a little before a transparent version of her lifted up from her body and got sucked right into the crystal. 

Artemis screamed in fear and ran back to Apolla's side. She was ice cold and was not living anymore. "Apolla? APOLLA!" Artemis was shocked by what just happened. He then saw a white light lift out of Apolla and went out into the air. He knew that it was Sam's power, going to search for her. 

"It's no use whitelighter. I have her soul and her powers. Oh, Arkon is going to be OH SO PROUD." He said sarcastically. Artemis could feel the anger in his veins pumping and his blood boiling. This evil darklighter had just stolen his partner's soul, and she was no more. "You're going to pay…..I swear it. You'll live to regret what you've done….."

"Oh but see whitelighter. You're nothing. I now have her power, and her soul, which means that half of the binding spell from that GIRL has gone away. The girl now has her witch powers back, and once I'm finished with you, she'll have her whitelighter genes initiated as well which means……darklighter poison will be as deadly to her as it will to both of you. Her power is mine. Your power is mine. Give it up. You've lost."

"You'll never get Sam. You'll have to get through me first……I swear that you'll never get her!!! Not while I'm alive!!"

"Exactly why I have to kill you." Spencer said deviously. Artemis stood up strongly, and fists formed in his hands. His eyebrows were arched in a certain way and his eyes were evilly glaring at Spencer. Spencer merely laughed. He then mockingly sniffed the air. "Ahhhh…..I can feel the girl's presence already…..and….her location. Guess I'll be stopping at…..P3 next." He said. Artemis couldn't hold his anger anymore. He gave a sort of war cry and charged at Spencer. Spencer stood his ground and he took a deep breath. 

"Come and get me."

****

Sam had been dancing for hours. She hadn't noticed that time had passed so quickly. Neither did the other three girls. They were all too busy having fun that they totally forgot about their worries. Arnold smiled as the he and Sam danced lively. Sam blushed as she saw Arnold glance at her every now and then. She glanced at her watch. **_10:49_**. They had been at the club since 7. She merely shrugged and went back to dancing. She was starting to regret having said all those things to Alyssa about getting caught and about worrying so much. 

After a few dances they _finally_ got tired. Arnold kept smiling longingly at Sam and grabbed her hand. Sam flinched at the sudden warmness of his hand, and felt nice that she had a guy who was sort of like protecting her. They walked together, still holding hands to the couch way in the back that Alyssa and Tyler had saved for all eight of them. Arnold and Sam sat down on the couch next to each other while Holly, Bobby, Karis, and Richard came along. 

"This was great! And what's best is that we haven't gotten caught yet!" Richard screamed over the noise. The other seven nodded their heads in agreement. Sam laid back on the couch, feeling tired from all the activity she'd been involved in the past few hours. Arnold stretched back and put his arm over her shoulder. "I'm really glad you came tonight." He said calmly. Sam turned bright red.

"Yeah….me too." She said. Arnold smiled and stared in her eyes. 

"Yeah…..you know Sam…..I just wanted to say….that….I've…ummmmm." Arnold hesitated. Sam lifted an eyebrow, still clueless to what he was about to say. "Ummmmm…." Arnold continued. "Ever since you were in my AP US History Class when I was a Junior and you were a Freshman….I kinda really had a big crush on you." He muttered. Sam's eyes widened. "You…on ME?" she said with the most surprised tone she had ever had. Arnold smirked and nodded. "Yeah….I mean….you're smart…..and funny…..and really….pretty. I just really liked you….but I dunno. I didn't think you would wanna go out with me."

"Well…..I kind of liked you too….I've had a crush on you ever since the beginning of freshman year….."she said blushing even more than she as before, if it was possible. Arnold grinned and so did Sam. They totally ignored the other people and their other friends in the club. Sam scooted closer to Arnold and laid her head on him. Arnold smiled as he wrapped her arm around her and they just sat in silence, savoring the nice moment. 

"Hey you two lovebirds!!" Karis shouted from the other end of the couch. Arnold and Sam suddenly sat up and glanced at the other six. They both blushed as they saw the others staring at them, rolling their eyes. "We're gonna get a few drinks!!! Cokes I guess?" Karis added to her call. Everyone nodded their heads. "Yep…..no alcohol for us….." Holly said sternly. Bobby seemed to nod in agreement. Sam hesitated. 

"Wait….how are we gonna get it in the first place? The bar's probably gonna check for i.d…." she said. Richard pulled out his wallet and pulled out his driver's license. "Got a fake one……had it made from one of the connections at school, only use it when I need it, for example, nights like these. It's no problem." He said as he walked away with his counterfeit ID to the bar. Sam sighed and prayed that nobody would suspect them as illegal minors. They had gotten through most of the night, but she knew that the night wasn't over yet.

****

Piper sighed and yawned from feeling the sleepiness and drowsiness of the night. She was leaning on her elbow again, everyone had their drinks and she was pretty bored. She was used to the loud, banging music that played, since she was there practically every night. She took a deep breath and looked around the club. Happy couple there……dancing couple there…….kissing couple there. It was the same for Piper every night. She looked around slowly, and still couldn't stop reminiscing about the night she and Leo had to break up. 

She had been trying to get it out of her head for the past few hours, but just couldn't. She had to glance back at the chair she and Leo always shared a kiss on. She gave into her urging and glanced back to the couch all the way back in the club. She was startled when she saw people sitting in it. Anger suddenly kicked in when she realized other couples taking hers and Leo's seat. She had the sudden urge to blow them all up into pieces. She was about to just spit in disgust and turn away when she realized something queer about the couples that were sitting on the couch. One in particular.

The fairly tall guy, with the dark brown spiky hair and the well-built body had his arms around a girl. A very…..familiar girl. She had long, chestnut brown hair, with nice cheekbones and a slender body. Her eyes were nice and hazel and her smile was so familiar that she kept trying to think who it was that she looked like. Then something caught the tip of Piper's eye. She glanced slowly to the side, looking at the shiny bar countertop that she was leaning on. It was shiny enough, to see her reflection quite clearly. She glanced at herself and her eyes widened.

She glanced at the girl, then back at her then to the girl, then back to her. She did this several times and she gasped at the sight. The girl looks liked a mini replica of….._her._ It wasn't even funny how much they resembled each other. It looked unreal. She lifted an eyebrow as she continued to stare at the young girl in confusion, and in amazement. But while she was staring, she processed something else in her mind. She glanced at the other girls next to her and the other guys. They didn't look old enough to be 21. They looked young…….in fact, VERY young. And their height didn't exactly help their age-defining either. She snapped when she finally realized what they were. **Minors.**

She finally had caught some, although the question about her mini-me was still lingering in her mind. But she didn't want it to interfere with her job. She needed to check their ID, and quick. She was about to leave the bar counter when a tall, young mad approached her. "Excuse me, I'd like eight cokes please?" he asked, his voice sounding high and young. She suspected him also. She glanced at him weirdly and held out her hand. "ID." She said sternly. The guy smiled and gave her his driver's license. According to his info, he was 22. She didn't really have time to believe him or not, she just needed to get to the other minors. 

She quickly filled the glasses with the right amounts of ice, and filled them each with Coke. The guy paid for all of them and he left. She was about to leave before another interruption came along. When the guy turned around with the tray full of open-glass Cokes, he had crashed into another man and had spilled all over the place. At least…..Piper thought so.

****

Sam still sat down, loving the feelings she had for Arnold. The way he lightly touched her skin while his arm hung over her shoulder. The way she felt protected by his big strong figure, but also felt like she had a need to protect him. She smiled as she snuggled with him like he was one big stuffed animal. Arnold felt the same way with Sam and kept embracing her tight, knowing he was the guy and he should have an urge to protect her in any way. He didn't know why, but Arnold felt something weird with Sam. Something really good that he had never felt with other girls before. A fuzzy feeling near his heart whenever he hung with Sam. And he loved it.

Suddenly, a bright ball of light descended from the ceiling. The bright light was looked very visible, but nobody seemed to notice it was there. As Sam snuggled next to Arnold, the ball of light headed towards her, then suddenly shot right into her chest. She jumped suddenly, feeling the surge of energy in her. Arnold was startled by her sudden movement.

"Sam? Anything wrong?" he asked, letting go a little bit to give her room. Sam felt very queer. Her insides were jumping all around and it felt like she had just felt a big energy boost. Her fingers felt tingly and she had big sensations inside of her. "Um….weird, I just felt something…..I feel really…..different, for some….reason……." she said, rubbing her chest a little. 

"Do you need water? Rich should be back with the drinks in a sec……" Arnold said putting his hand on her back, making sure that she was okay. Sam smiled at his worry and shook her head. "No I think I'm going to be okay…." 

Arnold nodded his head and smiled. He laid back down. Sam straightened herself up and was about to snuggle back with Arnold until something caught her eye. To her, it seemed that the whole thing was happening in slow motion. She saw a woman put all of the glasses on a tray. Then she saw her hand it to Richard. Richard grabbed the tray and turned around, but then another man crashed right into him and Sam saw the glasses fly into the air.

"RICHARD!" she screamed as she shot her hands out wishing that she would go and stop the whole thing from happening. Well…..she did.

****

Piper saw the whole room freeze. She looked all over the place examining all the frozen bodies. Piper glanced down at her hands. _'Um….I didn't shoot out my hands….' _She looked straight ahead and watched the spilled liquid frozen right in the air. She looked at the customer who was in a position where he looked like he was slipping but was frozen half way. But what caught her eye, or what she heard actually, was the panicky breathings of her identical twin, the girl she was about to check. She glanced to her right to stare at the girl. 

The girl's hands were shot out to the recent customer, and her eyes were widened. She was breathing quite heavily and she was glancing all around her. "What the hell…..???" she said out loud. She noticed that all the environment had stood still. She glanced back at the boy she was sitting with and noticed that he had stopped moving. Piper's eyes widened when she saw the girl still moving. "Oh my…." She said in surprise. But then, it was like the girl heard her surprised look and she turned to Piper. 

"AHH!" she screamed. Piper glanced at her. "How did you…."

"Why are you still moving! Why am I still moving?? What did I DO??" she screamed, looking as if she was about to break into tears. Piper stayed silent, wondering if this girl knew that she had frozen the whole room by magic. _'It's either she's a demon….or a good witch. Or she could be the angel of destiny. No…… I don't even think she knows if she's evil or not…..' _Piper said as she observed the girl. The girl and Piper stared at each other for a few minutes, just looking at each other, noticing the resemblance between the two of them.

"Who…..are you?" Piper asked. Suddenly, the two got interrupted when the whole club unfroze and started to go to its usual commotion again. Piper's view of the girl got blocked by the sudden movement and covering of people. The customer had gotten soaked with the cokes. People were cleaning it up. She noticed that the customer whined, but then ran back to the couch in the back, along with the other suspects. She snapped out of her fantasy thinking world, and tried to ignore the fact that the girl had frozen the room. She ran out of the bar and into the crowds of people. 

When she finally got in view of the eight adolescents she pointed her fingers out to them and screamed at the top of her voice: "Hey YOU KIDS! Let me see some ID NOW!" 

****

Sam shook her head as the room turned back to normal. _'What the hell did I do? And why the heck was everyone still except that one lady…..oh god….'_she thought to herself. Her eyes were still widened as she sat back down with Arnold. Arnold noticed her strange behavior. "Uh Sam? You okay? You look really pale like you've just seen a ghost….."

"I….I….I'm….f..i…fine…." she stuttered. She was shaking a little, scared from the amazing scene that had just happened. She tried to think of a million possibilities that could have been the explanation for that whole thing. Her little thinking was interrupted by a sudden appearance by Richard. He was soaked in the Cokes he had just bought. "Sorry you guys……big accident……" he said, pointing out his stained shirt. 

"Eh, it's okay Rich! We'll just get something to eat later I guess….." Bobby said. The others nodded in agreement and were content until a sudden shout startled them and gave them a scare. A woman was going through the crowds, pointing at al eight of them. "HEY YOU KIDS! LET ME SEE SOME ID NOW!" she screamed at the top of her voice. The four girls hesitated. Their hearts stopped and realized that they were about to get caught. Bobby and Arnold grabbed their girl's hands and whispered to everyone. 

"RUN."

Arnold grabbed Sam and everyone followed behind them as they ran through the crowds and out the back door. They ran as fast as they could, the girls having a hard time, except Sam, since they had high heels or other kinds of fancy shoes on that were not meant for running. Piper ran as fast as she could after them. "STOP!" she screamed as she ran out the back door and followed them. The eight ran down the alley and when they got to the opening there was a two way split. 

"Let's split up!" Tyler screamed. Bobby, Karis, Richard, and Holly ran left, while Tyler, Alyssa, Arnold and Sam swerved to the right. Piper saw their split and chose to follow the delinquents that went to the right. She ran after them, still a bit far behind them. Arnold and Tyler were up running ahead while Sam stayed close behind while Alyssa struggled to run. They ran pretty far, and Piper having used to running after demons and warlocks was still behind them, although there was a pretty big gap between all of them. 

Sam was startled when she saw Alyssa trip and fall. She stopped and ran back to Alyssa. Tyler didn't notice and kept running, but Arnold ran to Sam. "Sam…come ON! She's COMING!" he screamed to her. Sam shook her head and gestured for him to keep going. "Go! I can't leave Alyssa here. You have to go or you'll get caught too!"

"Come on Sam!"

"Arnold…..just go! I'll catch up with you guys!" she screamed. Arnold gave one last worried look to her, and then ran off to catch up to Tyler. Alyssa's shoe got stuck in a crack in the sidewalk and her knees were scabbed from the fall. Sam helped her up, and she had a pretty hard time getting up. Sam looked back, and saw Piper closing in on them. "HEY! STOP!" she screamed. Sam panicked and got Alyssa up. She put her arm around her and ran with her. They were pretty slow so Piper was catching up fast. When they got to another junction, Sam stopped and turned to Alyssa.

"Go the other way…..it'll be easier. Can you run now?" she asked. Alyssa nodded and they went their separate ways. Sam, being tired from all the running and carrying, was slowing down. Piper was now energized and was catching up to her. They were now in a part of the street where there were barely any cars visible and there were just houses and apartments around. Sam was running until she tripped and fell on her knees. Piper finally caught up to her. Sam was on the sidewalk and was on her back. She held her knee as she felt the throbbing pain. Piper went up to her. 

"You…..were trespassing into my club…..and I'm afraid I'm going to have to take you back and call your parents young lady." She said sternly. She was about to take her wrists when Sam hesitated and shot her hands out again to stop Piper from getting her. "No please!" she started. But when she shot her hands out, a trash can behind Piper exploded. Sam's eyes widened in fear in what she had just done. Piper's mouth was wide open, astounded by another magical power she possessed. She had BOTH of Piper's powers. "Who….." she started but stopped.

Sam's eyes were filled with fear. She was shocked at what she had just done and was scared to death. Piper's eyes were filled with sympathy and just wanted to comfort the poor, scared girl. "Wait….I…."

"I'm sorry….I'm sorry…." Sam said, shaking her head and glancing at her hands. She got up and ran away fast. Piper was too shocked to run after her. She had to tell this to her sisters that she had an encounter with another magical child, that had a complete copy of her powers. She was about to walk back when she noticed that the girl had dropped some things when she fell down. Chap stick, a pen, and a wallet. She bent down to pick them up and opened the wallet slowly. There in one of the picture frames was a school ID that contained all her info along with a picture. She stared at the name.

_Samantha Melinda Fielding _

Her eyes widened at the sight of the name. She almost dropped the wallet to quiver in fear. It all made perfect sense. The girl looked exactly like her, looked the right age, fourteen, and even had a little bit of Leo in her. She had the same exact powers as Piper and was it just coincidence that she had the exact first and middle name of the daughter she had and loved many years ago and let go? "Oh my god." She put the wallet and other things safely in her pocket, and started the run back to consult Phoebe and she knew that if it was her…..then this would be some adventure that she would never forget. **_ To be continued………Stay tuned for Chapter 11 of "Separation." _** A/N: Obviously I spent a LOT of time on this….hehe mostly for the fans! Well……I hope you liked their meeting. I would greatly appreciate reviews and some constructive criticism. And some complements…hehehe…..well really hope you liked this chapter! Hope this makes up CF12 ;) 


	11. Bad Feeling

A/N: I love feedback…I love it! I love you guys! You have been berry berry good to me….I reached my record in reviews!!! This has been my highest-review fic ever….and I just wanna say….THANK YOU! I really enjoy writing this fic when I know that I have people who like it J So….I worked up the motivation and determination to write another chapter! Hopefully….it's as good as the other ones have been. Thank you thank you thank you!!! Oh and Brooke….sorry if I disappoint you a little bit in this chapter……

Summary**:** This is an A/U fic. What if the Elders never let Piper and Leo get married? What if they forbid them from having any kind of relationship? And they followed the rules, except that Piper still got pregnant. So what if their daughter had the exact same story Paige had? Piper and Leo had to give their powerful daughter away to another family...and they were never the same.……time passes by, and a chain of events….leads Piper's daughter and the Halliwells to another exciting, and emotional adventure.

Disclaimer: I do not own the show or any of the characters, except for some that you don't recognize

****

Separation- _Chapter 10_

Paige sipped her Pepsi from the straw sticking out from the McDonalds labeled disposable cup. She was sitting at a booth alone with papers from the huge file scattered all over her table. She was reading several reports on _'Samantha Melinda Fielding'_ so she could see if there were any clues or anything to see if she could actually be her niece. Paige was searching in a determined manor, hoping and praying that this was her sister's daughter, so it could give Piper some peace. 

This was normal for her. She was always determined to help her sisters in any way that she could. She felt it was her duty to do it, considering that she was the only sane one left in the family and because her sisters have done more for her than anyone could ever know. She needed to repay them, and doing these things to ease their troubles seemed like the perfect thing. 

Phoebe was no longer right in the head. Her troubles with Cole have drove her off the deep end. She had become the FREAK. Always going on dates with people she barely knew, always working on her advice column which by the way has been going down since people have been complaining constantly about her bad advice, and also snapping at Paige whenever she mentioned her ex-husbands name. And Piper, well….you already saw most of her bad side. Paige was really keeping the whole family together and she was determined to keep it from falling. 

Her eyes scanned the papers in her hand quickly as she tried to process each and every word. Everything was in this file. Her grades since Kindergarten, reports on misdemeanors, exams, personal information, and even a photo from each grade. Paige took the photos and spread them out on the table in order. She watched the evolution of this young girl, from missing places in her mouth in Kindergarten, to that beautiful mini replica of Piper in sophomore year. 

Paige decided that was enough proof for her to drive over to their house and question her supposed aunt and uncle. She searched through all the papers , looking for the personal information page. She smiled once she found it. She carefully read the page and found her address. She grinned happily. But the grin disappeared once she thought of what else she could do. She slapped her head hard. "DUH!"

Her birth certificate. Every school record should have a copy of the student's birth certificate enclosed in their file. If they didn't, it was either lost, or you were an illegal immigrant or something else. If it was in here, then it would show who her parents were, no matter what. She searched frantically for the copy throughout all the hundreds of papers in front of her. Her search continued for a while until she came upon another personal information sheet that contained an important message at the bottom. It was in pen ink and it looked like a message that was written from the principal.

__

"Guardians registered with no birth certificate. Claimed it was lost while moving to the location. The whereabouts of the Mother and Father of the student unknown. Although other information was retrieved. Student was excused from the lost document, and allowed to complete registration into school. Repeat: **No Birth Certificate"**

No Birth Certificate. The words appeared over and over on Paige's mind. Could this be one ironic coincidence? Paige sighed, taking the minor setback all in. She banged her head lightly on the table, groaning. "Damn, Damn, DAMN!" she whispered to herself, so that no one else in the fast food joint would hear her moans. She now had a newfound hate for irony. 

After getting over her anger, she sighed deeply and started to put the papers together. '_At least I have the address….At least I have the address…..DAMN I hate irony!!!_' she thought as she gathered her things together. She got up from her booth and sipped the last few drops of her pop before throwing it in the trash. She walked out of the fast food restaurant, and breathed in the fresh air of the night. The place was beginning to smell like socks since she was sitting right near the children's play place.

Paige jumped into her car, and held the paper with Samantha's address in front of her. She carefully pulled out of the driveway and drove away, not knowing what to expect once she did meet with Sam once again.

****

"It's no use fighting whitelighter." Spencer said calmly, blocking each and every punch Artemis was throwing at him. But Artemis didn't seem to hear what he was saying. Nothing was blocking the anger from taking over his veins and doing everything he could to take revenge. A kick here and an attempted throw there, but Artemis just couldn't get his hands on him like he wanted to. Spencer laughed as he moved his head quickly. Fighting Apolla and winning had given him a boost of energy, and more confidence that he was actually going to succeed in his doings. 

Spencer managed to duck and kick Artemis at the same time, weakening him. Artemis knew that he had a good chance of losing, since he hadn't had the same amount of training Apolla had had, and he wasn't exactly fit for it either. Living for over a century took it's toll on you. Artemis backed away, trying to get over the shooting pain in his leg. 

He then surprised Spencer by jumping on him. Spencer fell to the ground. Artemis punched him hardly in the face, making Spencer's jaw ache like crazy. Artemis stood up. Spencer tried to get up slowly, and he was on his knees when Artemis kicked him from the bottom and buried the front of his shoe right into Spencer's chin. Spencer's head jerked up suddenly and he felt the blood in his face suddenly rush to his brain. While still in the air, Artemis' leg swung over his head, and then he roundhouse kicked Spencer on the side of his head, making Spencer fall sideways on the floor.

Artemis looked down at Spencer, still not satisfied that he was still breathing. Spencer's jaw lay flat on the floor. He moved slightly, trying to get up but Artemis just kicked him once again so he would stay on the ground. Artemis had much anger in his eyes, wanting to use every ounce in his strength to beat him until he would live no more, but he knew that was against everything he lived for. He sighed and knelt on the ground. Artemis may not have been trained very well in the martial arts, but he still had an enormous amount of strength in him. 

He picked Spencer up by his neck, and held him up so that his legs were dangling in the air and he was choking a bit. "Give me Apolla's soul now. And tell me how to release it." He said sternly, holding him up, not showing any sign of weakness. Spencer glared at him with squinty eyes and spit at him. "Go to hell…" he whispered. Artemis' anger rose once again and he screamed as he threw Spencer across the room. 

Spencer crashed into the dining room table, of course now the dining room table was only a pile of broken wood. Artemis could hear Spencer groan a bit and Artemis took a small breather. But he was shocked when Spencer's crossbow suddenly appeared in his hand. His arm stretched out toward Artemis and he pulled the trigger so that it went flying, heading straight for him. Luckily Artemis sensed it in time and moved his head slightly to the right, so that it would miss him and head straight for the wall. Artemis' senses went right back up and he started moving around since Spencer kept shooting arrows constantly at him. 

Artemis moved swiftly, avoiding all the arrows that were being shot at him. One arrow went right over his head, just missing the top of his gray hair when he ducked. Another arrow was shot to his side, but he bent his back slightly so that it missed him by just an inch. Arrow shot lower this time, aiming for his leg but he jumped, spreading his legs out so that it went right through. It was like the matrix all over again….only with angels. 

Spencer then shot another arrow toward Artemis' face, and Artemis eyes were wide open. He had no choice but to grab the arrow's body and grip it with his hand right before the arrowhead hit his face. He gave a big sigh of relief as his hand held the arrow tightly and his eyes were cross-eyed for looking at the very tip of the arrow. But he suddenly yelped in pain, as he felt stinging in his hands. He dropped the arrow, and as it fell on the ground, he fell to his knees, clutching his right hand.

His hand was turning reddish purple from the poison that was spread across the arrow. It burned his hands and he screamed in agony as he felt the poison go through his skin and into his veins. He could hear Spencer laughing in the background as he clenched his teeth and shut his eyes tight. Spencer slowly got up from the pile of wood he was lying on. His crossbow still in his hand, now with a new fresh arrow in it's clutches. He groaned a little bit, still feeling the aches in his bones from the throws and kicks but got up anyway.

He walked over to Artemis smiling, and once he got to where he was, he knelt so that he and Artemis were at the same level. Artemis' eyes were getting droopy, and it seemed like someone had drugged him. His head was hanging now, and sweat drops slowly started to form and fall down the side of his head. "The poison spreads fast no? Even with the slightest touch of the arrow, it's like the poison can sense if the receiver is a whitelighter or not…..more whitelighter you are, the faster it spreads."

Artemis kept trying to keep his head up, but his strength was fading fast he couldn't even keep his mouth closed. His eyes were rolling around the place, not staying in one place. He took small, deep breaths. _'No…I have to stay strong….I have to stay up…I can't let the poison take over. I need to protect Samantha….. I promised Apolla….'_ He thought over and over in his brain.

"It's no use fighting whitelighter. The poison will just keep spreading until it has gone through every vein and nerve in your body until you are withered away. But see, I can't wait too long, so I'm just gonna help you a little bit." He said. He came closer to Artemis, and Artemis looked at him in the eye. He suddenly jumped and screamed in pain as Spencer shot another arrow right into his stomach. Artemis was no longer on his knees and fell to his side. Spencer merely laughed at the sight of Artemis suffering. 

In the middle of his cackle, and his senses suddenly jumped. "Hmmm….I can sense the child……" he said, tilting his head to think and to try and see how close she was. He smiled once he sensed her completely. "Oh. The girl's coming home….." he said, laughing once more. "Ah, this is working out too well for me. Traps, traps and more traps. I might get promoted to personal assistant by the end of the day!" he said proudly. Artemis only laid on the floor, shaking a bit, and sweating like mad. Spencer could hear him breathing heavily, trying hard to fight the poison.

"I'll be back Arty…." He said mockingly, as he disappeared in black orbs. 

****

Samantha hugged herself tightly so she could withstand the bitter cold of the night. She glanced at her watch. **_11:30._** It had been half an hour since the major incident at P3. The whole night was confusing to her, she was deciding whether it was a dream or not. Blowing things up, and freezing people except for that one person. The person who had chased her all 6 blocks away from the club. 

She reminisced in her head about the events that happened tonight. She went to a club. She met the most coolest guy, and he could be her next boyfriend. She froze every inch of the club with her hands, not knowing what the hell she had done. A worker had caught her at the club. She ran nearly a mile to get away from the lady, but then with her hands again she blew a trash can up. She ran another 5 blocks just to get away from the woman, and she found out she had dropped her wallet in the process so she was forced to walk home instead of taking a warm bus or cab. 

Another thing was that the woman had looked terribly familiar. She KNEW in her mind and in her heart that she had definitely seen that woman before but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. She needed answers. Where had she seen that woman before exactly? Why was she the only person who didn't freeze with the rest of the civilians? Why had she chased her so far? And why was she looking at her like she realized some familiarity between them too……

The woman had looked just like her. She didn't want to believe it, but god how could she not notice? She looked at reflection in the mirror long enough to memorize every single detail about her features, her look and her body. And it was like this woman was her all grown up. Same hair, same eyes, same….everything. What was she a mini clone of her? She remembered the old classic movie from the 90's that she saw on the Turner Classic Movie Channel….what was it called? Something with Powers….Austin….something like that. 

__

'Ah Sam! Why the heck are you thinking of old cable movies at a time like this? Do you still not BELIEVE what just happened right now? You FROZE and BLEW UP something. That's not something your average person would do…..'

Then again, she was anything BUT normal. All the weird feelings, all the crazy suspicions, never knowing her past, not knowing the truth. _'Oh my god…this thing is like one big puzzle. And the pieces seem to be slipping together one by one…..'_

She decided that she would talk to her uncle and aunt about all of this. She was going to pour out what she had to say and what she had done tonight and what had happened in the last few days. She would tell them each and every one of her suspicions and ask them for more answers. She needed to find out about her parents. And she needed answers to her questions about her guardians to, like where they went or who they really were…..or where do they get all the freaking money!

She had been walking for at least 45 minutes now, with the amazingly thin jacket and the cold breeze blowing against her making her goosebumps rise and making her shiver like crazy. She was about a block away from her house now, and it wouldn't be long until she was warm with her aunt's cup of cocoa and her favorite gray Old Navy hooded fleece sweater that always kept her warm in the winter nights like these. 

Suddenly, a feeling went through her. One of her weird feelings. Another big gust of wind blew at her, but she realized that this feeling had absolutely NOTHING to do with the bitter cold. She stopped in her tracks and closed her eyes tight. Something bad had happened. She could feel it so badly inside of her. She couldn't explain _how_ she knew that it was something bad but she just knew. She looked up ahead of her, glancing at the empty and quiet street and she saw her house far away. She had to get there. Now. 

__

'Now.' She told herself, as she let go of the tight hold she had on her elbows and told herself to just run. She gathered speed and her legs were rushing as much as possible. She didn't care how cold it was with the wind blowing against her skin, but she knew that she just needed to get home. 

__

'Run, dammit. RUN!' she forced herself. She didn't really feel herself running. She couldn't feel her feet heavily pounding on the ground as she took big steps. She ignored the signs of aching bones and tiredness. All she was focusing on was her house and she needed to get there as fast as she could. Her breath was getting shorter, and it tired her out as she was breathing in the cold air in her lungs heavily and fast as she ran. Her chest was starting to hurt from running so fast but she was almost there. 

As soon as she got to her front lawn, she stopped and paused. She glanced at the fairly large house. All the lights were shut except for a few hall lights upstairs and the single office light in the lower left front window right next to the door. _'That's….weird. Aunt Apolla should be watching tv or something in the house….all the lights shouldn't be closed. They're never closed until at least 12…..'_ she thought to herself. 

__

'Oh God. Something's wrong.' She thought, worried and scared to death. She laid her hand on her chest, trying to control her breathing and the aching pain in her chest sensing that something was DEADLY wrong. Her eyes were filled with worry and anxiety. She quickly took her keys out from her coat pocket. She was lucky not to have dropped those while escaping from club security. She held her key as she walked up the front steps. 

Sam was about to insert the key into the keyhole, when she noticed the slightest crack in the door. _'Oh….God. The door….is open.'_ She thought once more, examining the unlocked, open door with widened eyes. She took a deep breath and pushed to door wide open. She ignored the loud creak in the hinges and walked in slowly. She looked up the stairs, and into the office, wishing that she would see her aunt watching TV on the couch or her uncle busily punching keys onto his calculator, but it was practically pitch black. 

She looked straight ahead to the kitchen and could see something on the floor, but couldn't make out what it was since it was so dark in the house. She walked towards it slowly, wanting anxiously what it was. She peered at it, hoping that it was an inanimate object but she practically shrieked and jumped when she saw it move slightly. She got over her fear quickly, and walked towards it more. Then, with a little more moonlight shining through the kitchen window, she saw who it was.

"Oh my….UNCLE ART!! UNCLE ART!" she screamed, now running towards the body on the floor. Once she got to the kitchen she slid down on the floor and knelt to where he was. He had an arrow in his stomach and blood was spread all over his white polo shirt and over the tile floor. Sam broke into tears as she saw her helpless father figure on the floor. She took his hand and held it tightly. It was icy cold. 

"Uncle Art?" she whimpered, shaking him a bit. "Uncle Art…wake up…..please…wake up….." she pleaded. Her tears running down her cheeks, a liter a minute. Her denial took over her, and she acted like a little helpless girl. "Uncle Art….come on….stop…..stop joking. Wake up….PLEASE wake up…." She said, still shaking him. She heard him groan a bit, and he opened his eyes. 

"Samantha….." he whispered. His voice was cracking and she could tell that he was weak and was slipping fast. "Samantha…get out of here…." He managed to say. He was weak and was wounded but he still had the strength to talk clearer than Apolla did when she was hit. "Too…dangerous." 

"No, Uncle Art. Who did this to you? Who did it???" she asked him, her tears still running. Her heart was weakening just looking at him. She was breaking down as she held his hand. She rubbed it, hoping that he would warm up. "I'll call 911. I'll call the ambulance. They'll help Uncle Art. They'll help…You're going to be okay…." She said, acting a little happy, still believing that he would be just fine. 

"Samantha. I….We….we're not….related…." he tried to say, but took deep breaths first. "I'm not your uncle….I'm your angel…."

"Stop talking Uncle Art….you're delerious."

"Sammy listen to me. There's not enough time to explain this all….no time….you're in danger….you need…Prue….darklighters want…power….." he said, stopping in between each word. Samantha looked at him with a ghastly expression. "What are you talking about? I don't…know….."

"Your parents….were…magical. You're…powerful. You have powers……and Auntie Pam and I were watching….over you…..and Prue….."

"Prue? What does she have to do with this? What are you talking about??" she whimpered, with fear rising in her eyes. Artemis took more deep breaths. 

"An evil person did this to me….and he wants you. You need to find Prue….and tell her…when I…am gone……"

"Gone…stop talking like that Uncle. You're not going to be gone. You're going to be fine….once the hospital……"

"No hospital can save me…..I'm an angel, and only magic can heal me…."

"What? Angel…? Magic?"

"I'm an angel Samantha. I am your guardian angel. I protect you and I have magical powers. We are from up there….and we protect witches and future whitelighters."

"Witch…what the….."

"It's a lot to take in. I know it is. But you're going to have to trust me…….." he said, but then groaned a bit. He could feel the poison taking over the last clean part of his body. "Prue…..find….Prue…." he said, before making one last gasp. He felt the poison finally take it's deathly toll on him, and he closed his eyes as he took one last breath. Sam's eyes widened. 

"Uncle Art…..Uncle Art…..UNCLE ART!!!" she screamed, with more tears running down. "No….no…NO!!!!!!!!!" she screamed out loud as she cried and kept holding his hand. She lied down next to him and laid her head on his shoulder. She cried her heart out on him, and still couldn't believe he was gone. He couldn't be gone….it just wasn't possible. He was talking nonsense. Her eyes were shut, and she was still laying with her uncle when the similar bright ball of light that came out of Apolla, came out of Artemis, and as it lifted into the air, it shot right into Sam.

Samantha felt it and jumped. She sat up and felt the big energy boost. Her tears were still running down her cheeks but what shocked her even more, was to find her aunt laying down in the corner of the kitchen, as pale and as lifeless as her uncle was. She let go of her uncle's hand and ran over to her. "No….not you too…NOT YOU TOO!" she screamed angrily as she tucked some of her aunt's hair behind her ear. 

"No…this can't be happening….this can't be HAPPENING." She screamed, her voice clouded with sadness and anger. The sudden voice behind her made her jump. "But it is my dear….it is."

Samantha jumped to her feet and whirled around. She saw the ruffled hair dirty blonde, with the black messy trench coat and dusty clothes. He had a crossbow in his hand but he was trying to hide it behind the long trench coat. Her eyes widened as she saw the mysterious stranger. "Who are you….what did you do….why….are you here…."

"I'm here for you honey. And only for you…." He said, smiling and pointing the crossbow at Sam. He smiled mockingly and held out a shiny crystal. He laughed as he examined the crystal that was shining brightly and blinking constantly. He held it out to the lifeless body of her uncle, and she watched in horror as he sucked an enormous amount of light out of his body. "Ahh….sweet power." He said as he laughed.

"What the hell did you do to them….." she said in anger. Spencer suddenly looked up at Sam. He smiled evilly and lifted an eyebrow. "What are you going to do about it?" he said, still smiling. She held up her fists and stood in a defensive stance. "I'm trained in tae kwon do. I can kick your sorry ass for doing this." She whispered. It seemed to have made him laugh even more.

"Oh my gosh. I'm so scared of the little girl. Save it. You're a whitelighter now. And that means I'm going to take your power and kill you just as well." He said as he held the crossbow up to her face. Her eyes widened as she ran. He shot out an arrow that missed her by one little centimeter. She ran out of the kitchen and into the office. He smiled as he ran after her.

"Come back here little whitelighter!" he screamed. He saw her run into the office. He followed her and shot another arrow. It hit the TV instead of her leg. She ran some more. He kept shooting arrows at her but Sam ran as fast as she could. She hopped on and off the couch and the desk. An arrow accidentally hit their only light source and they were in darkness. 

But since they were near a window, Spencer could still see her clearly. He kept shooting arrows at her and Sam kept avoiding them. Until….Sam got tired, and thought he couldn't see her anymore. She was crawling behind him, trying to get out of the room, but Spencer sensed her and aimed the crossbow at her. She stopped and froze in her position. Spencer, having no mercy smiled and laughed, as he pulled his final trigger.

Sam screamed in pain as the arrow hit her stomach. She fell down to the floor, and could feel her strength slowly slipping away. Everything started to go black, and as she closed her eyes, she whispered something quietly, something that only she could hear and not Spencer, since he was too busy laughing his head off from the victory.

"Prue…" 

****

Prue smiled as she laid all the delicious plates of food on the small, old kitchen table. The poor family that was seated around the table smiled and their stomachs growled at the sight of all the food. They hadn't eaten in weeks, and it seemed like this angel had come from nowhere as a savior to their hunger. The four around the table, held hands and said grace. There was a mother, a father, and two little boys. The youngest was the one who was saying the small prayer and his words and cute little voice touched Prue's heart.

"God bless my family….my food….and God bless the beautiful angel that came to save us." He said in a little baby voice. "Amen." Everyone repeated. The two boys and the mother immediately dug into the food, considering that they hadn't had a descent meal in weeks. Their clothes were already dirty and smelly, and their hygiene you could tell was terrible. 

Prue stood on the side with her hands crossed. The father stood up from the table and went up to Prue. "Thank you….thank you so much. We would have starved if you hadn't come…..Especially Peter there…." He said, glancing at his youngest son and admiring his courage and bravery. Prue grinned. 

"It really is no problem Mr. Waters. This is my job. And speaking of jobs, a little source told me that you were in desperate need in one. Let's just say I hooked you up with a good paying one." She said, pulling out a piece of paper out of her pocket. She handed it to Mr. Waters and his eyes lit up with joy. 

"Oh Miss….thank you. You are really heaven sent and I hope you have many blessings coming your way. You definitely have ours." He said, shaking her hand and grinning. She smiled and nodded. "Just…don't quit doing those good deeds of yours. And keep teaching your family your good ways. It will all pay off….I promise." She said reassuringly. He nodded and then went back to the table. She walked out of the rotten tenant, feeling proud of herself.

She sighed, knowing another good deed was done. She was wondering what she could do now, since the voices in her head had all calmed down and none of her charges were in need anymore….for now. She was about to orb to home to her apartment until something caught her ear. It was a scream. A torturous scream. She listened more carefully to all the voices in her head. 

"Prue…." She heard quite clearly. She recognized that voice. _'Sam….'_ She thought, sensing her fear and pain. "Oh no…she's in trouble. SAM!" she screamed, orbing out, in desperate need to come to her rescue. She could feel all the fear, anxiety and pain that was going on inside of Sam, and there were a million reasons on what it could be about….

**__**

To Be Continued…..Stay tuned for Chapter 12 of "Separation."

A/N: Well…another chapter….I decided to update because I have been getting a lot of encouragement lately….. *eyes CF12 and Brooke*. Hehehehe. Well…I hope you like this chapter…and hope you didn't get too disappointed with Artemis Brooke….sorrrrieee…but I promise that the end will make up for it. I hope this chap wasn't too long….or I hope that this wasn't too boring. Please read and review!!! And one little question….I wasn't sure if I showed enough emotion with Sam and Artemis and Apolla…did it lack something? I hope not….but don't be afraid to tell me if it's lacking emotion or something….okay…..read and review now!!!!!

****


	12. Secrets Finally Revealed

A/N: wheeeee! Another chapter comes! Another thanks to all my reviewers! I love you guys! I love ya!

Summary**:** This is an A/U fic. What if the Elders never let Piper and Leo get married? What if they forbid them from having any kind of relationship? And they followed the rules, except that Piper still got pregnant. So what if their daughter had the exact same story Paige had? Piper and Leo had to give their powerful daughter away to another family...and they were never the same.……time passes by, and a chain of events….leads Piper's daughter and the Halliwells to another exciting, and emotional adventure.

Disclaimer: I do not own the show or any of the characters, except for some that you don't recognize

****

Separation- _Chapter 12_

Piper walked up the steps of her home, carrying her purse and keys in one hand. Inside her purse, she carried the girl's chap stick, pen and wallet. She needed to show Phoebe. This was just getting too weird. She inserted her key into the door, turned it and the door opened. She hung up her coat and walked towards the kitchen. She could hear her boots clicking as she took each step.

"Phoebe? Phoebe!" she yelled as she walked quickly to the kitchen. Once she entered the dark doorway to the kitchen, she saw her little sister slumbering on the table. Her head was on her laptop and her eyes were shut tight. 

"Phoebe!" 

Phoebe jumped up, startled by the sudden call of her sister. She rubbed her eyes and turned to Piper. "Oh…hi Piper. How were things at the club?" she said as she yawned. Piper rolled her eyes and pulled up a chair next to Phoebe. "Something happened." She said. Phoebe was slightly confused. "Huh? Like what?" she asked. Piper pulled out the wallet out of her purse and opened it to the ID. She handed it to Phoebe, and Phoebe looked at it curiously. "What do you see." Piper said sternly, observing Phoebe's look.

"Oh my gosh! Is this your old high school ID?? You looked adorable!!! Almost like you do now only smaller!!!" she exclaimed, acting childish and immature. Piper rolled her eyes once more and pointed out the name. "Look at the name." She said again. Once Phoebe caught sight of the name, her eyes widened as she stared at the black, italic print on the small card. 

She started to stumble, trying desperately to get her glasses on so she could see more quickly. As the glasses sat on her nose and helped her near sighted vision, she gasped as she read the name out loud. "Samantha Melinda." She said, letting the syllables slur with her speech. "What…does this mean?" she asked. Piper shrugged.

"This girl…she was at the club…illegally. With friends. First….she froze the room…and then she exploded a trash can…." Piper said slowly, remembering the whole thing in her head. "She could be…"

"Your daughter." Phoebe said, taking her glasses off. Piper seemed to flinch once she heard those two words. She didn't know what to think at all. "What if she is?"

"I'm not sure what we should do…"

"Should we even do anything?" Piper asked. Phoebe stayed silent and laid her head back on the table. "I don't know…I just don't know. Why don't we wait till Paige comes home yeah? We'll talk about this together. All three of us." She said, trying to give Piper words of comfort. Piper got up, and was about to go up to her room, but then paused and turned back to Phoebe. 

"Phoebe?" she said, quietly. Phoebe sat up and turned to Piper.

"Yeah?"

"I can't stay away from her forever…" Piper said, tears welling up in her eyes, threatening to slip down her cheeks. Phoebe nodded and got up to hug Piper. Piper embraced Phoebe. They hadn't actually hugged each other meaningfully for the longest time until now. 

"I know honey…"

****

Prue orbed right into the house. She landed in the entrance parlor, she looked around the place and noticed the whole house was pitch black. She walked around the place, her footsteps echoing on the linoleum tile beneath her. She walked into the kitchen and gasped when she found Apolla and Artemis on the floor.

"Oh my god. Apolla! Artemis!" she gasped as she ran to Artemis' side. She saw the deadly darklighter arrow in his abdomen, and shook her head. "No…" she whispered. She checked his pulse and then when she felt nothing, she knew he was dead. She walked over to Apolla and did the same thing. She got the same results. "No…This is terrible." She said, shaking her head, feeling sadness that two of her best friends now passed away. 

"Sam." She said, once she realized her purpose for being here. She ran all over the house, and once she got to the office she saw a darklighter holding a crystal out to Sam. "NO!" she screamed as she ran and jumped kicked the darklighter right in the side of his head before he could do anything with the crystal. "Get off me!" he screamed.

She punched him hardly, and he was unconscious. She sighed and walked over to Sam. She was unconscious and bleeding from her stomach with an arrow pierced right through her body. "Oh my god…Sam…" she whispered as hurried to take her pulse, praying that she was still alive. Thankfully she was still breathing. Prue was about to get ready to take the arrow out when she got grabbed by her shoulders and flew to the other side of the room, crashing in to a wall.

She grunted as she fell to the floor and rubbed her back from all the pain. She got up slowly, gathering her strength together, getting ready to fight this darklighter. And she was supposed to be a pacifist. Pshh. 

He hurdled toward her, trying to tackle her down but she hovered up in time and he bumped his head into the wall. She hovered back down, and he was on his knees, trying to recover from his sudden crash. She lifted her leg and roundhouse kicked his face. She gave him a few more kicks until he was down completely. Then she lifted him up with her arm, and buried her right fist into his face. 

He fell to the floor, totally knocked out. Blood was pouring out of his nose and lip. Prue sighed and ran right over to Sam. "Sam…it's going to be okay sweetheart." She whispered, lying Sam down in a more comfortable position. Prue was definitely panicking. She heard Sam groan a bit, and she was sweating, since the poison from the arrow spread through her very quickly. Prue was just about to try and pull the arrow out, until she heard the hinges of the door creak. 

Someone else came into the house.

****

Paige parked her old green beetle right in front of the house. She looked down at the address on the piece of paper in her hand, then to the gold plated numbers sealed on the house. She confirmed that this was, Samantha Fielding's address. She took a deep breath and turned the key in her car so that the engine would turn off.

"This is it." She said to herself, as she took her purse strap and put it around her shoulder. She opened the car door, and walked out. She pressed the little button on her keys and heard the beeping sound that confirmed that her car was indeed locked. She walked up the cobblestone pathway of the suburban house. She paused and looked up to glance at the big house. Man was it big, and very luxurious no doubt. 

She noticed that all the lights were off, except for some hall lights on the second floor. She looked at all the windows and then she glanced to the window to her left. She noticed two figures in the window, but couldn't make out what or who they were. It was too dark outside and in the house to see. Who knows, it could be a hat rack or cabinet or something.

But then the figures moved. And she heard lots of "hyeahs!" and "Ahhhh!'s" and "You BITCH!'s." Her eyes widened. Could there be a burglar in the house stealing their stuff? Paige went up to the front door, and noticed it was left open. She opened the door a bit and was surprised to what she saw. 

Well, she couldn't see anything really. Not from all the darkness in the house. She turned to her left, from where she saw the figures and gasped to what she saw. A girl was on the floor bleeding with an arrow in her stomach, and a woman was laying her down. She looked more around the room, and saw a blonde man with a dark trenchcoat lying face down on the floor. Definitely a darklighter. _'Oh god…could that be SAM?_' Paige thought, referring to the wounded on the floor. 

The woman with the black, long and dark hair looked up at her, and when their eyes met, it suddenly felt like they knew each other all their lives. Paige paused, and just kept staring at the woman. The woman looked just as shocked as Paige. "Paige." She whispered, and it looked like she had tears welling up in her eyes. Paige lifted an eyebrow, wondering why this woman looked so familiar, and how this woman knew her name.

"Excuse me? How'd you know…." She started, but was suddenly interrupted by a sudden scream. "Ahhh!" the darklighter shouted as he hurdled toward the woman. "Watch OUT!" Paige screamed, pointing to the darklighter behind her. The woman whirled around and kicked the darklighter just in time. The darklighter took a few steps back. 

Suddenly a crossbow appeared right in his hand, and he was aiming the arrow right at Paige.

****

Prue saw the darklighter aim the arrow toward Paige. "NO! STOP! PAIGE!" she screamed. Paige seemed to be frozen in fear. As the darklighter shot the arrow from the crossbow, Prue jumped and knocked Paige down to get her out of the way. The arrow hit the wall instead of Paige. Paige snapped out of her ice age and stood up. 

"CROSSBOW!" she yelled. The crossbow in the darklighter's hands dematerialized and materialized right into Paige's. She triggered the crossbow, and shot an arrow at the darklighter. The arrow hit him, and he stared at it in shock as black smoke slowly started to come out of his wound.

"NO!!!" he screamed as he exploded into a white light. Prue gave a sigh of relief, then spotted the bright crystal on the floor. Paige tapped her shoulder. "Who are you?" she asked. Prue panicked. She wasn't allowed to see any of her sisters at all, especially Paige. She took a deep breath and took a step back. Without answering her question she went over to Sam and knelt down.

She couldn't heal her in front of Paige, or that would be revealing that she was whitelighter. She hesitated and turned to Paige. "Bring her to Leo." She whispered. Paige's eyes seemed to widen and Prue could tell she had a million questions for her. But before she could ask them, she bolted out the door. Once she was outside, she orbed out. 

****

"Bring her to LEO? How the heck does she know Leo?" Paige asked herself. She almost forgot about the wounded girl on the floor. She ran over to her and knelt to see her face more clearly. She saw that it was Sam, and she was losing blood fast. Paige started to panic. "Oh god…what do I do? What do I do?" she asked herself.

She picked Sam up so that she was holding her in her arms. She made it so that Sam's arm was over Paige's neck. She was about to leave when she spotted the bright crystal on the floor. She hesitated, deciding whether she should take it or not, and then finally decided to take it. She shifted Sam's body a bit, so she had a free hand. 

"Crystal." She said, and waited until the crystal was fully formed in her hand. She gripped it, and then held Sam in her arms tightly. She had to bring her to the house. She looked out the window to her car, and decided she would come back later to retrieve her vehicle. Then, she finally orbed out. 

****

Piper was cleaning up a bit in the kitchen. There were a lot of dirty dishes and since Piper had nothing else to do, she decided to wash them. Phoebe was still typing away on her laptop. She had paused to sleep most of the day, so she barely got any of her advice column finished. "Where did Paige go anyway?" Piper asked, not looking away from her washing.

"I don't know. She just said something about making things better, and then…poof! She's gone right out the back door. Or was it the front door? Oh, who cares…" Phoebe said, trying to drop the subject to go back to her column. Piper paused in her work, thinking about where Paige could have gone. 

"Where do you think she went?" Piper asked, curiously. Phoebe shrugged and turned around to face Piper. "Don't worry about it, I'm sure she'll be home in no time-" 

Just as Phoebe started to finish her sentence, both of them heard a loud thump, the sound coming straight from the foyer. Piper's head jerked up, startled by the sudden sound and so did Phoebe's. Then they faced each other and gave each other curious looks. "See? Told you." Phoebe said, grinning. Piper looked at her younger sister's funny face and rolled her eyes. She had to smile.

"PIPER! PHOEBE! COME QUICK!" They heard Paige scream. Piper and Phoebe glared at each other for a few seconds.

"What do you think she wants? Do you think there's a demon involved?" Phoebe asked, taking off her glasses and started to stand up. Piper shrugged and turned off the faucet at the sink. 

"Guess we just have to go and see." She said, wiping her hands quickly in a towel. Piper and Phoebe and then ran out of the kitchen as fast as they could, and into the foyer, where they heard Paige's voice come from. Their footsteps echoed through the empty house as they jogged over to Paige. When they finally saw sight of her, Piper gasped when she saw what was in her arms. 

Paige was struggling with the girl in her arms, and the girl was bleeding quite badly with an arrow pierced through her abdomen. Her hair was messed up and tangled in her face and she was unconscious. But Piper didn't need her awake to realize who she was. Her hand made her way to cover her mouth and she couldn't get over the shock.

"That's…"

"The girl from the picture?" Phoebe finished for her. Paige ignored the two and quickly brought her to a couch. "Come on you guys…we need to save her! No time for talking!" She said, with struggle in her voice since the girl looked a little heavy. She laid the girl on the couch on her side, so that the arrow wouldn't touch anything or hurt her. She was starting to sweat and was starting to breathe raggedly, since the poison was spreading fast. Her skin was turning a bluer color, and her veins looked like they were popping out of her arm.

Phoebe nodded and ran to the kitchen to get some things to help. Piper couldn't move. She just stared in shock as she saw the girl in front of her. Could that actually be her daughter? The girl, that she had been longing to hold, and to hug, and to tell her how much she was sorry and how much she loved her. Could that actually be HER little girl? "Paige….where did you find…her…" she whispered, feeling tears coming down her eyes as she saw the poor girl fighting for her life. 

Paige turned to Piper and saw the tears slipping down her cheeks. "Piper….I'll explain who this is later. We just have to hurry, or she'll die." She said, going back to making things comfortable for her. "But…her name's Sam." She added, winking at Piper. Phoebe ran in with some towels and water. She took a hand towel, dipped it into some ice water and dabbed it around Sam's forehead to help relax her a bit.

Piper snapped out of her frozen, in-shock state. If this was her daughter, she needed to help her. She wasn't going to let her die from that arrow. She was in danger, and her daughter or not, it still made her an innocent that they needed to protect. Piper ran over to the couch, and took over Phoebe's job in dabbing her face with cold water. Paige took one of the towels and wrapped it around her hand. 

"I'm gonna take this out…." She said, as she grabbed hold of the body of the arrow tightly. Sam shifted and groaned slightly, her hands clutching the couch tightly. More sweat drops rolled down the side of her head as she started gasping a bit. Her little hurt voice worried Piper and Piper scooted closer to her. As she dabbed her head with the cloth, she calmed her down by whispering in her ear.

"It's okay Sam…we're here…" Piper whispered. She hesitated before she whispered: "I'm here for you."

Paige took a deep breath before quickly pulling the arrow out of her abdomen. Sam screamed loudly, and tears started to slip down her cheeks. She was still unconscious, but she was still feeling the pain. Like she was in one bad nightmare. Piper's hand rested on Sam's thigh, and Sam's hand let go of the coach and grabbed Piper's hand. It was like she knew Piper was there with her giving her support. Piper was startled when she grabbed her hand, but then only tightened their grip.

Sam held her hand tightly, and her breathing grew faster and faster. Piper stopped dabbing her forehead, and started stroking her hair a bit. Right there, Piper had surge of weird feelings go through her, and somehow she knew in her heart, that this was definitely……her and Leo's daughter. She could see it. She could feel it. And nothing was denying it now. Piper kept calming Sam down, stroking her hair to comfort her and holding her hand tightly. Sam was gripping her hand hard, since she was feeling so much pain.

"Shhhh…it's gonna be okay honey…I'm here now. I'm here." She whispered. 

As Paige set the arrow down, Phoebe ran with another towel to Sam. She pressed the towel down on her wound so that she would be putting pressure on her bleeding. Paige looked over to Piper and Sam together and motioned for Phoebe to look at them too. Piper didn't notice them staring since she was turned away to Sam. Phoebe looked back at Paige with worried eyes, but also had a small smile. Paige smiled back.

"The poison's spreading fast. We have to heal her. Should we call….Patrick?" Phoebe asked Paige and Piper, with questioning eyes. There was a moment of silence for a bit. Patrick was their newly assigned whitelighter after Leo had gotten reassigned from the girls 16 years ago. Of course the girls didn't welcome him with open arms. They barely talked to him, and only called when they needed help from the Elders, or needed to be healed. 

Patrick knew that they took him for granted, which is why he wasn't always that friendly with them. Piper always said that he was the female version of Natalie. He never let the girls break the rules, at least not in front of him, and he knew all about Leo's and Piper's relationships, and kept lecturing her on how it was wrong to have been with him, and that they would get nothing out of their relationship except trouble. Well, Piper, Paige and Phoebe looked at Sam, and they knew that she was anything but trouble.

"No. We can't. Not this time…not for her." Piper whispered, not looking up from Sam. Paige nodded in agreement and Phoebe just went along with it. "We have to heal her. How are we going to do that…." Phoebe asked, waiting for the expected answer to come. Paige sighed, remembering the mysterious woman at Sam's house.

"We have to call Leo."

****

Leo sat on the cement block below him, staring at the night sky. He was the roof of some apartment building. He always came to the roof at night, just to stare at the stars and think. It didn't even matter which roof he was on as long as he got a clear view of the sky. He went roof hopping every night, ever since he gave Samantha away. Once he even stayed on a roof in Paris.

He looked at the bright stars and the small bunches of clouds. Staring at the environment around him just seemed to relax him a little. Gave him a little time to think. Ever since Sam had been given to Artemis and Apolla, he just didn't feel complete. He always questioned himself on how this little being could make him feel so….good about himself.

Staring at her just made him so complete.

He closed his eyes and a vision of her just stayed with him. He could see her beautiful chocolate eyes, and her bouncy dark hair. And he could see how she was just a miniature version of beloved Piper, with a little of him in her. He was so proud of her, and just wanted so much to tell her that. But he knew that it would never happen. She would grow up to be a normal person, and he and Piper would probably never get to see her again. 

While he was on the rooftop, he always shut down the voices in his head of his charges, so that he could get an ounce of relaxation. He ignored all the talking and the shouting. None of them were really in real danger, so he just ignored them. But suddenly, he jumped when he heard a familiar voice ring in his ears.

__

"Leo…Leo?? LEO! LEO!!! Please, Leo." The voice said. His heart stopped. He knew who it was, and he didn't know what to do. 

Piper hadn't called him in years. After Sam was born, she used to call him often, at least once a week, to comfort her in her times of tears. Sometimes, Leo even heard her calls but ever since that new whitelighter got assigned to them, they started to stop seeing each other, afraid that the Elders would know that they were still keeping contact. But he always kept an extra ear out for Piper, just Piper. He never kept an extra ear out for Phoebe or Paige, since they might be in trouble and he might forget that they weren't his charges and go help them. 

Then he would be punished even more.

But her cry for help seemed so desperate this time. What did she want? Was it important? _"Leo. Please, I'm begging you. Answer this call. LEO!"_ Piper screamed. It had to be important. He got up suddenly and decided he wouldn't waste anymore time. 

Piper was in trouble, and she needed help.

****

Piper paced back and forth, glancing to Sam constantly. Phoebe kept putting pressure on Sam's bleeding. "He better hurry up. Sam's condition is getting worse. If he doesn't come in a minimum of 20 seconds, I'm calling Patrick. I'm not going to let her die waiting for Leo." She said, solemnly. Piper nodded and called Leo's name more times. 

Paige grunted in frustration. "Why the heck isn't he answering? He should be dammit…this could be his daughter." She whispered. Piper ignored the comment and kept calling him. "Leo! Please. Come here. LEO!!!! LEO!!!" she called, her voice full of desperation and worry. She paced back and forth, still glancing at her wounded daughter.

Sam was getting even worse. Her blood spread throughout the coach and soaked up at least three towels. Her breathing was getting slower and she was literally turning purple. She started to shiver, since she was getting cold from all the blood loss. As Phoebe held the towel down, she felt Sam shiver like crazy from all the blood loss. Phoebe shook her head and stared at Piper's worried face. 

Leo still hadn't come and Phoebe had gotten angry. "That's it…I'm calling Patrick. We can't let her get any worse." Phoebe said, sternly. Paige and Piper stayed silent and turned away because they knew that she was right. Phoebe was about to call Patrick's name but was suddenly interrupted by a mix of shining blue and white orbs in front of her eyes. Paige and Piper were also startled.

Piper's breath was taken away as she saw Leo slowly form out of the orbs. His ruffled blonde hair and his beautiful eyes just reminded her of the young repairman she fell in love with so many years ago. Leo turned to her and their eyes met. All her mixed up feelings for Leo fluttered in her stomach. Leo's hardened eyes seemed to get softer as he gazed at Piper. "Piper." He said softly, his voice going through Piper like a gust of wind. It was so familiar, and she never realized how much she missed him.

"Why did you call me?" he asked, walking to her slowly, and putting her hands on her shoulders. His touch to her skin gave a little chill to her back. A moment of silence came in between them, as Piper closed her eyes. Leo caressed her cheek a little, tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear. Piper finally gave in to her urging and embraced him as tight as she could. She laid her head on his chest gently, loving the feeling of his skin. 

All her memories came back, flooding to her eyes, and she didn't want to let go anymore. "I missed you so much." She whispered, her eyes getting blurred with tears. He rubbed her shoulder, hugging her back and laid his chin on her head. "I know baby…I missed you too hon…I missed you too." He whispered in her ear. They're emotional moment suddenly got interrupted by a little throat clearing from Phoebe.

"Leo. She called you because we have a little situation here. We need you to heal…..someone." she said, hesitating on her last word. Leo turned around and his eyes widened as he saw Sam wounded on the couch. He saw her weak, and shivering, and blue. "Oh my god. Samantha!" he said, running over to her, with worry in his tone. He sounded like a panicked father. One that was worried to death that his daughter was wounded badly. 

Piper followed closely behind him as he ran over to kneel next to her. Piper kneeled right next to Leo. Leo stroked her hair and kissed her on the forehead. "Honey, it's going to be okay… How did this happen?" he asked, turning to all three of the sisters. "Why is she here in the first place?" he asked, curious about the whole situation. 

"She was wounded by a darklighter. I found her at her house…It's a long story. Hurry, you have to heal her before it's too late. She's been wounded for hours now." Paige said, informing Leo. Leo turned to Piper and took a deep breath. 

"I'm guessing you already know who she is…." He whispered. Piper nodded slowly. "That's why I called. I couldn't call Patrick….we need you. I need you…." She whispered back. Leo nodded and quickly turned back to Samantha. His glowing hands were over Sam's wound in no time, and all four of them sat in silence as the wound started to heal slowly. 

Finally, all the blood was sent back to Samantha, and she was normal again. She was still unconscious, but her breathing was back to normal, and her skin color was as peachy as ever. She was now calm, compared to what she was like before, breathing hysterically and gasping from the poisonous pain. All four of them gave a big sigh of relief, thankful that she was okay. Leo then snapped out of his relief state and went back to Sam. He held her hand, and rubbed it, trying to give her comfort.

"She's really ours. This girl….I….can't believe it." Piper said, stroking her hair. Leo nodded and turned to Paige. "Why is she here. She's supposed to be with her aunt and uncle. She's not supposed to be here Paige. This is our daughter here. We can't let the elders know she's even ALIVE." He said in a stern voice. Paige was just about to protest, when another voice interrupted their conversation from behind them.

"Maybe you can explain that to me first." 

All four of them turned to behind them and saw a Caucasian man with dark brown hair and blue eyes. He had a little goatee and his eyebrows looked stern. Phoebe gasped when she saw him in the doorway.

"Oh my god. Patrick." 

**__**

To be continued…..stay tuned for Chapter 13 of "Separation."
    
    A/N: Love it or loathe it?? Sorry for the long delay you guys…had a very sad writer's block. But I got through because why? Because of the encouragement of all my fans and ESPECIALLY FROM YOU CF12. I'm telling it's so weird calling you that….but heck doesn't matter! Thanks you! You really make my day….encouraging me like that. Who knew there were GREAT friends like you in this world. You rock cuz.


	13. Waking Up

A/N: Do you see that freaking review number? 101???A HUNDRED FREAKING ONE? OMG PEOPLE. I can't freaking thank you enough? You know how much joy that gives me every day that I see that number hanging around my fic? GOSH.To pay everyone back.geez..if you want leave your email and I'll send you an e- card! Seriously I will! If you want one.leave your email and I'll send it right AWAY. And by the way.sorry if this chapter doesn't have all the italics and bold things in it..my computer's really messed up and won't convert my docs into html format..so try the best you can imagining the thought conversations in italics!!!  
  
Separation- Chapter 13  
  
"Oh my god. Patrick." Phoebe's hand slowly covered her open mouth as her eyes widened at the same speed. Paige stared in shock as she saw their whitelighter in the doorway. And as Piper and Leo stood next to each other, holding Samantha's hand, both their hearts stopped. Patrick's eyes were stern, and cold, not like any other whitelighter's look. He took a few steps out of the doorway, and towards the family as he eyed each and every one of them individually.  
  
"Shocked Phoebe? Normally, you guys don't have that freaked look on your faces when I come. And you usually don't have company at the house either. Why don't you explain to me what's going on here." He said, with his voice as emotionless as it could be.  
  
"How long have you been there...?" Paige asked, cautiously. Patrick shoved his hands into his pockets. "Long enough to hear who those other people are. Long enough to know who that little girl is." He said with a sigh. Piper's hands trembled as she saw the look on Patrick's face.  
  
"And I'm presuming that this young man is the famous Leo I've been hearing about. The breaker of all rules." He said with a little laugh. Leo's fists tightened and his eyes filled with anger, and rage. He couldn't ignore the sudden urge to abandon his pacifism and start throwing some punches at Patrick right now. How could the Elders have picked such a careless replacement for the girls? The Charmed ones?  
  
Piper stood up walked up to him so that they were face to face. "Patrick, please.you cannot tell the Elders. If you do..Leo..my daughter..I.."  
  
"I'm sorry Piper. You know I can't keep this to myself. You know that it's my duty to report this to the Elders. You have to confront them..you can't hide this forever. They're going to find out anyway."  
  
"Patrick. Please, you've heard the stories. I love Leo, and I love my daughter.I don't want anything to happen to them at all. If the Elders find out." she started but Patrick turned away before she could finish. "Don't let me give you the talk again Piper. Love can't interfere with anything. You knew the rules, and you broke them. It wouldn't be right to not give you a punishment of some sort..."  
  
"Punishment?? PUNISHMENT? For what? For falling in love with the person that THEY sent us? It's only natural! And even those STUPID elders should realize that! You can't blame them for falling in love! It's only natural..if they didn't want them together, they should have seen this coming and not assign Leo to us anyway!" Paige shouted loudly in their defense.  
  
There was a silence after her exceptionally loud comeback. Samantha shifted a little on her back. Leo turned back to her, to see if she was okay. A sudden urge came over him, to just take her away, from all of this commotion, so that he could be alone with her and then he would know she was safe. Piper lowered her head, not knowing what to say. Phoebe just stayed silent. Patrick sighed and started to walk away.  
  
"And I think I'll include that rude remark in my statement too. You charmed ones can work it out when you go to court 'up there'. They're going to HAVE to have a summoning of the council once they hear this." He said as he started to walk away. Phoebe then stood up suddenly and ran after him. She grabbed his shoulder and he automatically flinched and turned around to swat her hand away. "Don't touch me wi.Phoebe." He said with hesitation.  
  
"Patrick you have to let this go. We've done a lot for you right? Can you just please keep this major thing for us." She pleaded. Patrick's eyes seem to flame with rage. "What??? Done a lot for me?? Is stopping me from doing my job doing a lot? Is leaving me behind when I was supposed to accompany you in innocent savings doing a lot for me?? Is getting me in trouble with the Elders because I'm not able to do what I was assigned to do like giving me a gift basket??? Saying that I'll never amount to that Leo over there. Well I'm better than that reject angel over there and I'm done. If you don't want me to report this you're going to have to do a lot more than just talk to me because I really wouldn't mind seeing you jackass's and that little brat getting sent to life in exile." he screamed.  
  
Leo stood up suddenly and hurdled towards him. Since he was too fast, he nailed Patrick to the wall and held a tight grip to his neck. Patrick started to gag, turning red and his face was scrunched up trying desperately to breathe. "What did you call my family?" Leo said, still holding him up to the wall, his body filled with fury and anger. Piper, Phoebe and Paige all ran to the two.  
  
"You heard me." Patrick said through his gagging. Leo held him tighter and he started to gag even more. All blood rushed to his face and he was as red as a rose. "Leo STOP!" Piper screamed, putting her arms on Leo's shoulders, trying to pull him away. But Leo seemed like he couldn't hear her. "I'll show you to talk about my family like that. Nobody..talks like that about my wife, or my sisters, or my daughter. I don't even know how you qualified to become a whitelighter with that language and that attitude in you."  
  
"Wouldn't.you ..like to know..." Patrick whispered.  
  
"Leo! STOP! You're suffocating him!!! STOP!" Piper kept screaming. Paige and Phoebe were now helping to get Leo off of Patrick. Leo kept on choking him right until he noticed Patrick wasn't looking at him anymore but behind him. His eyes wandered and a smile on his face slightly appeared. Leo turned his head around with his hands still on Patrick but what he saw made him abruptly let go.  
  
Samantha had woken up, and she was staring at Leo choking the living daylight out of Patrick. Her eyes were full of so much fear and Leo could see her trembling right on the couch. He slowly stood up, her lips shaking as she stared at all five of them. Patrick was coughing, and using all the time he had to suck in all the precious air to fill in his lungs. Paige, Phoebe and Piper turned around suddenly to see what was happening. Sam stared at all of them in great fear, and started to look for the door.  
  
Leo stretched out his hand to signal her to stay. "No wait.Sam!" he shouted to her, trying to grab her shoulder. When he finally did, he turned her around and looked her in the eye.  
  
****  
  
Sam groaned and opened her eyes a bit. She couldn't remember anything in what happened the last few hours. Where was she? Where were her aunt and uncle? She remembered something about a man in the house, and Prue. But nothing specific was coming to mind. She needed answers, and felt so woozy and sick. Her eyes were watery, and the bright lights blurred her vision a bit but even if her sight was blurry, that didn't stop her from feeling that something was seriously wrong.  
  
Once her vision cleared she stared up at the ceiling. It didn't look familiar. It didn't look like her house. She lifted her head up to see the couch she was laying on. It wasn't her regular brown leather couch. She sat up and stared up at the surroundings around her. It wasn't her house. She tried to think if she had any friends who had the images of this house, but she couldn't think of any.  
  
She was in a stranger's house.  
  
How did she get here? Why was she here? Suddenly she felt like breaking down and crying. She wanted to be home. She wanted to be home with her aunt and uncle. She rubbed her eyes wishing it was all a dream but it was no use. She didn't know where she was at all. She turned to her right and heard a bunch of people screaming and a lot of commotion.  
  
She saw the backs of three women. One with short, curly dark brown hair, one with long, straight chestnut brown hair, similar to hers, and one with short red hair. She also saw a blonde man, choking another man pinned to the wall. The blonde man, who looked extremely, extremely familiar, looked furious, almost like a monster. Sam flinched and scrunched up in her seat. She assumed that this man, by the way he was using all his rage to try and murder that young man, was some kind of murderer.  
  
Was she next?  
  
Sam started to whimper, her eyes set on that man, feeling fear like she had never experienced before. Her emotions started to run haywire and she didn't know what to do. Suddenly, she saw that the man being choked saw her, and once he did, everyone started to turn around to see her. The blonde man stopped choking the other man, and suddenly his face turned sad, like he was almost ashamed of what he had done.  
  
Sam was still scared out of her mind. He started to walk towards her a little. "Sam.." He whispered out of nowhere. Her eyes started to widen. How did this murderous, familiar stranger know her name? What, was she that popular to kill? She backed away, afraid that the man was going to grab her and start choking her as well. As if on cue, the man grabbed her shoulder and turned her around.  
  
She gasped, her heart beating out of her chest. Her level of fear and anxiety multiplied itself by ten. She stared into the eyes of the blonde man. His eyes seemed softer now, and something about his face seemed so familiar, almost as if he looked a little like her. "Don't be scared Sam. There's nothing to be afraid of." He said, his voice almost comforting to her.  
  
Something told her to listen to the man, and to say that he might be not so bad. But the images in her head were only leading her to when she saw him almost killing the other man. She closed her eyes and tried to get free from his grasp. "Please don't hurt me." she practically whispered, her voice trying to find a higher volume but her fear wouldn't let that be possible. The man suddenly let go of her, and took a step back. "I'm not going to hurt you..I could never hurt you Sam." He whispered to her. His eyes were pleading with her to not be afraid of her.  
  
Before she could say anything, the man who was being choked interrupted their moment. He rubbed his neck a little staring evilly at the blonde man. "Don't think the Elders won't hear about this. You will all be exposed soon enough." He hissed, as he stared at each one of them. Then his glare caught Samantha's eye, and he snickered as he stared at her. 'You'll be gone soon enough young one..' She heard the man say.  
  
Her eyes grew even more with fear. She could swear that it was that same man's voice, but she didn't see his lips even move. And it was loud enough for her to hear, but no one else did seem to hear anything. Suddenly, the man did something even more impossible. He started to turn into shiny blue lights, and in seconds, he disappeared out of the room. What kind of hellhole was this? Where the heck was she and who were these devil people?  
  
As she stared at the empty space where the man had disappeared with unbelieving eyes, something caught her eye. She turned to one of the women staring at her. When she got a full glimpse of the women, she gasped. The woman was the same person from the club who chased her and saw her freeze the club and make the trash can explode. Her eyes widened even more, if it was possible as she saw the woman. 'Did she kidnap me? Because I was in her club..or she might kill me. Oh god, oh god.' she thought as she backed away.  
  
"Sam, please..we can explain why." the red haired woman started but Sam put up her fists. "Don't touch me. I'm a blue belt in kung fu and I'm not afraid to use my fists in self defense." She said, stuttering in her speech. Just then, her memory started coming back to her mind, all the things that happened all in between. Her aunt and uncle. Tears started to flow down her cheeks and she started to whimper.  
  
"Uncle Art..Aunt Apolla." She whispered as she backed away faster now. The blonde man tried to chase after her but she was too fast. 'Run. Just run home. RUN.' She kept telling herself. Finally she was out the door, and she was running down the street, tears streaming down her eyes, eager to see if this was all a dream.  
  
****  
  
Leo looked at the fear in Samantha's eyes. He never saw someone so afraid, so afraid of him. He felt shameful and regretted ever feeling an ounce of anger, to actually scare his daughter. To actually make her believe he was the bad guy now. He felt horrible. "Sam." he muttered, but she just fastened her pace.  
  
He saw her take a look at Piper and gasp, and she fasted her pace even more. Before he knew it, she was already running. Leo tried to grasp for her again, just wanting to explain that he wasn't the bad guy. He was her father, and he loved her more than anything in the whole world. But she was too fast for him, and before you knew it she was already out the door. He started to run after her but he felt Piper hold him back.  
  
"Leo.she thinks we're the bad guys now..she's not going to listen to us. She'll keep running away. We have to find a different way to get through her, or she'll just keep running and soon she'll be in danger again." She said, with a depressing look in her eyes. He sighed, knowing she was right and went back to the living room where Phoebe and Paige were.  
  
Paige and Phoebe were plopped down on the couch and Piper scooted next to them. Leo stood pacing, thinking of a way to fix it all. "This is such a mess..I don't know how we're going to fix this one." He whispered. Piper laid her head on Phoebe's head and Phoebe started to hug Piper for comfort. Leo rubbed his head and tried to think.  
  
"Wait.you guys didn't even tell me why she was here? And why she had a darklighter arrow pierced through her in the first place." He said, facing all three of them. Piper and Phoebe turned to Paige with the same question in their eyes. "Paige?" Phoebe said, asking her to tell them at once. Paige made a scrunched up face and straightened up in her seat.  
  
"Okay.it all started when I went to that school..I bumped into her by accident and I saw her and heard her name and knew that she could be my niece. So after she left, I asked the principal for her file. I found her address and stuff, and I thought I could just find out if she was really her..Samantha Wyatt. Your daughter."  
  
"You should have told me Paige.I mean..you shouldn't have done this alone." Piper said, with a little disappointment in her tone. But Leo seemed to take it differently. His eyes seemed to widen and he confronted her suddenly. "What?? You started looking for her? Paige, you just can't do that! IF the Elders ever found out who was with her..where her location was.."  
  
"Wait a minute. What are you saying? That you knew this WHOLE time where she was?" Piper said, standing up and facing him in the eye with a sudden anger in her. Leo stopped, and sighed a bit. "Yes." He said reluctantly. Piper went up to him and slapped him hard on the face. Leo held his cheek and stared at her with forgiving eyes. "I'm sorry Piper..I can..."  
  
"Explain Leo? Explain how you kept the location of my daughter away from me? Fourteen years Leo..fourteen years I had to live without her. Fourteen years I had to count on my memories to give me a visual on her. She's my daughter too dammit. I'm her mother, and I think I deserve a little info on her once in awhile. Did you even think about how I would feel?" she snapped at Leo. All Leo could do was regret his actions.  
  
"Piper.I wanted to tell you.but I didn't want her getting hurt. I knew you would go look for her, and I couldn't have that.you're under strict surveillance already.I couldn't risk it. And you know it too." He whispered to her. Piper shook her head and faked a laugh. "You could have at least sent a picture." She whispered and sat back down next to Phoebe, trying to avoid eye contact.  
  
"Okay, now that we got this straightened out, I have to get to the next part of my experience. Anyway, so I went to her house, and inside it was all dark with nobody inside, and the door was open. When I got in, I saw Samantha with another woman..I don't know who she was, she just appeared out of nowhere. Before you know it, a darklighter comes in and tries to kill me but the woman saves me. And we fight together to beat the guy." Paige said, continuing her story.  
  
"Do you have any idea who the woman was? We can try to contact her to get to Sam." Phoebe suggested, but Paige merely shrugged. "The woman looked so familiar, but I couldn't quite get my finger on who she was. But she does know who Leo is. After we fought, she gave Sam, who was already shot by an arrow, to me and told me to bring her to Leo. So maybe you know her. She had..long dark hair, with blue eyes I think. I couldn't quite tell."  
  
"It's too small of a description to know who it was.I know a lot of people like that. But what was she doing with Sam? That part I don't get. And why was Sam alone in the first place?" he asked.  
  
"What do you mean?" Paige asked, not sure what he meant.  
  
"I left Samantha with two of my whitelighter friends when she was a baby. They've been her guardians her whole life, as her aunt and uncle-"  
  
"Ah.some new information I see Leo. Thanks for sharing." Piper said, once again showing much anger through her voice. Leo gave a sorrowful look to her and went on. "Well, they should have been there.unless..."  
  
"I didn't see anyone there Leo..I'm just guessing that the darklighter got to them first." She said, giving Leo a sympathetic look. Leo took a deep breath. "Well, we have to do something..I just don't know what." He said quietly. Paige suddenly looked as if she had gotten an idea and pulled something out of her pocket. She held a shining crystal to Phoebe's face. "I found this left at the house by the darklighter. What do you think it is?" she asked.  
  
Phoebe took the crystal and examined it. "I don't know.but it's shining very brightly. I'm going to go look at the Book of Shadows. Coming? Yay or nay?" she said, getting up from the couch. Paige followed her as they walked up the stairs. Leo and Piper stayed behind. Piper sat on the couch, staring at Leo, not knowing what to do. Leo had his arms folded across his chest as he stared longingly at Piper.  
  
"Piper.I.I'm sorry. You deserved to know.I was a fool..I just.didn't want anything to happen." He whispered. Piper got up and walked up to him so that they were face to face. She put her hand on his shoulder. "Just.there's too many secrets around us.I don't want there to be anymore. I'm sorry for over reacting I.just don't want anything to happen to you.or.her...I'm not even sure myself." She said back to him.  
  
Leo took a deep breath and leaned in to kiss Piper. Piper wrapped her arms around his neck, savoring the familiar feeling Leo always gave her when they kissed. Leo remembered how much he missed her embrace around him. Piper started to realize how much she actually missed Leo. How she longed to be in his armed every single moment. But she suddenly let go. "Come on.we have to find Samantha first." She whispered to Leo. Leo nodded and the two held hands as they climbed the stairs to the attic.  
  
Meanwhile, Paige was looking around the attic for some potion ingredients as Phoebe searched for something in the Book of Shadows about the crystal. As Paige looked through the bunch of things, something caught her eye. There was a picture, between a bunch of books and it had Piper and Phoebe in it. They were younger than they were now, but that's now what made Paige pick it up. In the middle of Piper and Phoebe was the woman that she saw in Samantha's house. Paige gasped as she realized who she was.  
  
"Oh god. Prue." She said, her hand over her mouth.  
  
Phoebe looked up from her doing. "What was that Paige?" she asked. Paige quickly put the picture back and turned around to face Phoebe. "Um, nothing Phoebe. Just thought I saw a bug or something." She said. Phoebe nodded and went back to the book. Questions ran through Paige's mind until Piper and Leo walked through the attic door.  
  
"So what are we doing now?" Piper asked, gripping Leo's hand. Suddenly, Phoebe stopped flipping and hit the book to get everyone's attention. "Found something!" she screamed aloud. Paige, Piper and Leo gathered around her and the book to see what she found. There in the book was a picture of a bald, middle aged man gritting his teeth as if wanting to look tough with the crystal in his hands.  
  
"Arkon. A powerful demon who is a darklighter force leader, one who uses darklighters to do evil deeds in order to please the underworld. Arkon is usually known to be very power hungry, and uses a special energy crystal that detects power and literally sucks the power from the being it's focused on." Phoebe read from the book.  
  
"So obviously, Arkon sent a darklighter to Sam's house to take her power." Leo said. Phoebe nodded. "And he's probably going to try again. It says here that he stops at nothing to get the right amount of power he needs."  
  
"Is there a vanquish?" Piper asked, examining the book. Phoebe read more and nodded. "To vanquish Arkon, we need to, according to the book, trap his own soul into his own energy crystal while saying this spell right here." Phoebe said, pointing to the spell in the book. All four of them seemed to sigh at the same time.  
  
"I'll make some potions that will help us fight Arkon." Paige offered as she went back to go make potions.  
  
"And I guess I'll make some spells to help us find Sam and the darklighters." Phoebe said, running to get a piece of paper.  
  
"We have to hurry up..we never know when he'll strike at Sam again." Leo said, knowing that Sam was out there, running, alone and helpless.  
  
Stay tuned for Chapter 14 of "Separation."  
  
A/N: Hoped you liked it. A review would be nice! Remember the thank you cards! Sorry again for the inconvenience of not having italics, bold, or underlining! 


	14. Sam's Legacy

A/N: I decided to work on my fic. Hahahahaha. I'm soooo sorry I took this long. See, I have lots of things to do, like school and it's near the end so I'll get even more time to work on this, so I'll finish it. Plus I lost my muse for a WHILE. Well, before I start, I just want to answer the questionable reviews I got. Hi Charmedchic72! Whoa, you like reviewed almost every chapter!! That's absolutely...excellent!! I remember you! You were my first EVER reviewer for my first (And highly overrated) charmed fic! Well, you left a couple questions. It's cool that you reviewed another one of my fics. Okay, first question:

love the baby's name, too, but am wondering why they didn't name her Melinda.

****

That was my doing. See no offense to everyone out there who loves the name, but I DON'T LIKE THAT NAME. It's not a cool name like Prue or Piper or Stephanie (joking...), so I went looking for another name in this list of popular baby names, and I found Samantha. It just seemed to fit...real real nice. So, that's what I named my special star in the spotlight!

__

so how come she doesnt know about her powers if she is being watched by whitelighters, huh?

****

Not to be rude, but if you paid attention to reading the story, then you would have seen that she doesn't know that her aunt and uncle are, or were whitelighters. They couldn't reveal their identity since if the Elders found out they were looking over Sam, it would be the end of Leo, Piper and Artemis and Apolla.

_just a thought but dont you think, with as stubborn as piper is and all, that she would have already tried several times to find Samantha?_

****

Again, not to be rude AT ALL, but I already wrote that Piper tried to find her once or twice, but stopped. You would see that she also didn't want Leo to be in danger, so finding Samantha was risking everything she and Leo were working for. She didn't want Sam to be hurt either.

I just wanted to make that clear...I hope my story isn't too confusing. To all my reviewers *eyeing specifically CF12, Brooke and Sam, I think your name is..the one's who's always emailing me?* I just want to thank you guys for reading and reviewing...and loving my story. I mean when someone actually takes the time something you made on your own...it's like, a really big thing...and it's a big deal to me. Thank you guys, so much. On with the show! 

****

Separation- _Chapter 14_

"Say that again." Arkon said with a clear and very grim tone in his voice. As he adjusted himself in his seat, the whitelighter standing in front of him took a deep breath and adjusted his shirt collar. He wiped off the little beads of sweat pouring from his head. 

"My Lord.....Spencer....was lost in a battle with a witch, sir." he said hoarsely. He realized that he had never been this scared in his life. Working with a demon was new for this particular darklighter and it was harder than he had expected. What he hadn't expected was to be assigned to spy on one of the top darklighters in Arkon's army: Spencer Slater. Spencer was one of his captains, and he was surprised when Arkon asked him to do the dirty deed. But he had no idea it would end this way.

Arkon seemed to flinch at the sound of the news, but kept his face straight and calm. "And...when did this happen?" he said.

"Just a while ago sir. I fled once I saw that Spencer had gone down....since I thought you would want to know."

"What was he doing before then?"

"He was at a house sir. First, he was acting strange, as if he was amazed to see what was inside the house. He took out the tracking crystal, and it was shining like....like....it was a car alarm light or something. It was extremely bright, and sir...I mean..."

Arkon reacted in a rather excited, anxious sort of way. "What? What do you mean? He found the great source of power that I hypothesized before...???" he exclaimed, standing up from his chair. The darklighter, startled by his sudden reaction, got more nervous and could do nothing but nod.

"Yes...sir. I could sense the power level myself, and I'm just a mere soldier of Spencer's....I don't have as good sensing skills as he does my liege." 

Arkon sat back down and scratched his chin a bit, as if he were thinking about something. "Did you see where exactly this power came from? WHO it came from?"

The darklighter took a deep breath and scratched the back of his neck a bit. "It's a long story sir, I'm not sure that you want to...."

"I asked you a question....Either you answer it, or the consequences will be very great. You understand, don't you? DON'T YOU?" Arkon said, suddenly standing up and screaming into the darklighter's face. His voice rang in the darklighter's ears and he quickly nodded. Arkon's veins that popped out of his face started to quickly sink back into his skin and he calmed down once more. "Good. Go ON."

"Well sir, I followed my Captain where he was going, like you asked me to. He stopped at this house....one that consists somewhere a little outside the city. There a couple lived, but it wasn't any ordinary couple. The couple were a pair of senior whitelighters, ones that had power levels over 7. They were partners, which means the two of them together, their power levels were great. Spencer eyed them as his next prey."

Arkon's smile seemed to be growing bigger and bigger each time he heard a synonym to his favorite word: power. 

"So, he seemed pretty content to get the whitelighters, and he was about to, when I saw a new expression on his face. That's where he orbed up to the second floor and that's when the crystal started glowing like mad, sir. The power was humongous...I mean, sir, I could feel it so much in my veins...pumping, and pumping. Darklighters sir, we can sense what kind of creature they are....and this was a half darklighter and half witch, whose powers were bound, but still it's aura consists of so much....it made me wonder how much it would give off if it's powers weren't bound....."

"Excellent....what was it anyway? I human? Some boy I suppose?"

"No sir...it was a young adolescent girl sir."

Arkon's eyes widened at the answer. "A girl??? A mere GIRL has this enormous power??? But....I don't understand.....?"

"I didn't at first either sir...but then I remembered a rumor I heard a few years back....some upper level demons sensed a new power, a powerful power on the side of good, and this was never confirmed....but it said that the charmed ones had a child....and I'm thinking she was put with these two whitelighters, and had her powers bound....to keep hidden from everyone else."

"The charmed ones? A child?? I'm an upper level...how come I never received word of this??"

"Well sir....this was only a rumor, and it didn't spread very far. Just little talk around the underworld."

Arkon nodded his head. " I see....what happened next?"

"Spencer fought with the whitelighters, which took a while sir. But he managed to terminate both and steal their power into the tracking crystal...."

Arkon shimmered with glee, and a big smirk appeared on his face. "Both whitelighters....so much power....." he whispered, talking to himself. He held out his hand toward the darklighter. "Well, where is the crystal? I must have it if I'm to get all that energy...."

"Sir...there's more with the story."

"Oh?"

"The girl's powers unbound....and Spencer was about to get her power, whitelighter and witch powers, but two witches came out of nowhere and both took Spencer out, and now he's gone before the girl ever got to get her powers absorbed....The witches have her now."

"But you must have gotten the crystal before they left...."

"They took it before me sir...the witches are in possession of that too...." 

Arkon's face turned to pure anger. His eyes literally turned to flames and his hands slowly formed into fists. "What." he said, his voice suddenly deeper. "Darklighter...your job was to watch your captain....and if anything happened, retrieve that crystal to me. Do you UNDERSTAND what you have just done by letting the witches have that crystal."

The darklighter's fear revealed itself all over him. His sweat beads started to fall faster and faster, and his heart beat right out of his chest. "But my liege...the witches...they took it before I could even....."

"LETTING THEM HAVE THE CRYSTAL COULD BE THE END OF ME. THAT CRYSTAL IS HOW I SURVIVE...IT CONTAINS THE POWER TO SUCK THE POWER OF ANY BEING, EVIL OR GOOD IF THE PERSON HAS THE ENERGY AND SKILL TO USE IT. AND YOU LET WITCHES HAVE IT??? DO YOU KNOW WHAT THE UNDERWORLD COULD DO TO ME IF THEY EVER FOUND THIS OUT???"

Arkon slammed his fists down and formed a high voltage energy ball in his right hand, and it generated with great electricity. He was breathing raggedly now, his teeth gritted into a fierce bite. "Now tell me darklighter....does anyone else know of this incident???"

"No sir...I went right to you...." he muttered nervously. 

Arkon's eyes went softer, and he calmed down. The energy disappeared from his hand and he let it down slowly. "I see...." he said. The darklighter, thinking that he just escaped death gave a sigh of relief. Arkon faced him in the eye. "It's too bad darklighter....I was starting to like you too...." 

The darklighter's eyes suddenly widened as he opened his mouth to scream, but Arkon had already shot out his palm in the direction to the darklighter and shot a very high voltage energy ball to his chest. The darklighter exploded into many black swirling pieces until they all finally disappeared into thin air. Arkon walked over to his desk and leaned on it, breathing heavily. 

He pressed a little button that had a little ringer to it. After a few seconds, a darklighter orbed into the room and went into a rest position with his head bowed down. "My liege."

"Conrad."

"Yes, sir."

"You're in charge now. I'm weak....and right now, I want you to get my energy from a few whitelighters, it doesn't matter what their power level is...I just need some more power since I used all of mine on your little friend. And I expect you to deliver this quickly...."

"Yes, sir."

"And when you come back...gather up your troops. We have something to claim and something to steal from the charmed ones..."

"The charmed ones sir??"

"Yes...now go, go, NOW. I need energy...." Arkon said as he grabbed his head to calm himself down. The darklighter quickly orbed out of the room. Arkon walked and slumped back down into his chair, since his energy was practically all out. 

'Once I get that crystal....I'll get all the charmed ones powers....plus this little powerful one...then I'll have all the power I need....'

****

Sam bent down and leaned on her knees a bit. She bent down and breathed in all the oxygen she could take into her lungs. She was out of breath and the sky was pitch black with only faint streetlights to light her way. She was sweating all over, and was her chest hurt from running so fast. She just had to get away....she just had to get home. 

__

Was it all real?

Was it all just a dream?

Who were those people...?

Why did all of them seem so familiar...?

All these questions lingered in her head as she stopped. She was in the middle of the street and had been running for an hour or so. All the motivation brought her about 10 miles but she was way far from home yet. She looked around her surroundings and realized in a heartbeat that she was lost. 

She fell down on her butt and buried her face into her hands as she started to sob. " Why is this happening? What does everything mean???? I have to get home......I have to get home. IS THIS ALL REAL???" she screamed into the darkness. She stood up and wiped away her small tears. She was going to find home, no matter what came her way. 

She was in the middle of the street, still sprinting in the same direction, and even though she didn't know where she was going, but she just had to get somewhere. She needed to get answers, to see where this nightmare led her. She ran faster and faster as she went down the street. "I have to get home....I have to get home....I have to get home...I have to get home....." she muttered to herself in slow breaths as she ran.

Suddenly, in the middle of nowhere a car turned a corner and headed right toward her. The headlights shone toward her and the car was going too fast that it was too late to brake. The car swerved but still headed towards Sam. The car was about to hit her when Sam screamed and closed her eyes to wait for the impact.

She waited.....and waited, thinking she was dead, waiting for the pain to run through her body. Nothing happened and she thought she was flying in the air from the hit. She was probably going to hit the ground any moment. 

Little did she know, that what she really did was disappear into blue and swirling lights before the car had a chance to touch her. 

Sam opened her eyes to see if she was going to see white rooms and gates and palaces and clouds that were supposed to be heaven, but instead she found herself in front of her house. She looked around vigorously, looking for the car, and looking for the place she was just in, but found nothing but her own, familiar neighborhood. 

Another chill went through her and she held her head tightly, not wanting more tears of fear to run down from her eyes. "What's HAPPENING TO ME???" she screamed to herself. "THIS CAN'T BE REAL!"

She ran down her pathway and opened the door so hardly that she fell while opening it halfway. All the lights were off, and it was pitch black. "AUNT PAM!! UNCLE ART!!"

Images of them lying lifeless ran through her head, like one big slideshow. She shook her head and pushed the thoughts from her mind. "It had to be a dream....it HAD to be a dream...." 

She looked in the living rooms and the offices and stopped before she walked into the room she dreaded to look into. "Uncle Art? Aunt Pam?" she whispered, with tears running down her cheeks, knowing that everything was one big nightmare if not just a dream. She walked into the kitchen slowly and saw what she left before the same day.

Her aunt laying against the wall with blood stained all over her stomach and her shirt. Her peachy skin was now pale, and her glimmering eyes were now closed and would never open again. Her chest lacked the motion of moving up and down for when she breathed, but now she was nothing but a white corpse. Sam turned around and saw her uncle lying on the floor.

His neatly combed gray hair was now ruffled and messy all over his face. His delicate skin was now sagged and was wrinkled while his usual bright smile on his face just disappeared and left lifeless lips that would never be molded again. She walked over to her uncle so that she was facing him. She stared wide eyed at both of them, the tears never stopping yet she never noticed they already started to fall. 

Sam fell to her knees and cried like she had never cried before. Her moans echoed throughout the house, since her mourning was so emotional. Her guardians, the only parents she had ever known were lying dead in front of her, and they would never come back. Not to cheer her up when she was sad. Not to make her feel better once she was sick. Not to give her unconditional love whenever she needed it. Not to make her feel so safe and comfortable once they cracked a little smile on their faces. They would never be back.

Sam sobbed more, and wouldn't stop. Her breathing was uneven because she was crying hardly. She lied down on the floor, so that she was face to face with her uncle. She looked at his face through her blurry tears and put her arm over to his back to embrace him. She put his arm over her to make her feel like he was hugging back. She didn't want to let go, and cuddled in his shoulder to his soft skin on his cheeks. 

But as she breathed and cried into his shoulder, her uncle didn't breathe in a rhythmic pattern along with her. His arm was heavy and drooped over her shoulder since there was no energy there to hold it up. She came out from her position and kneeled again to kiss her uncle on the cheek and to fix his hair a little, so he looked peaceful. Blood was stained on her shirt from the embrace, but Sam didn't notice a thing. She walked over to her aunt and kissed her on the cheek and laid her down into a more comfortable position instead of sitting against the wall. She lied her with her back down on the floor and her face up, as if she were sleeping soundly. 

Sam's tears spilled on the floor and left a watery track as she left and ran up to her bedroom. Things were too crazy now, she couldn't stay here. She would probably be put with foster parents and would have to leave everything she knew. It would never be the same without her aunt and uncle. The violent people at the big house who probably kidnaped her were probably after her right this very minute and was probably going to try and catch her. She had to leave, and quick. 

She took her messenger bag and emptied it of all her school books etc. She opened her closet and started stuffing random clothes into her bag. It didn't matter to her what she got, she just needed extra clothes. She took a travel pack consisting of miniature hygiene products and stuffed it into the front pocket of her bag. She took a picture that had her, and her aunt and uncle at Disneyland when she was 12 and stuffed the frame into her bag along with her stuff. 

She went to her aunt and uncle's room and took out a box full of cash that she knew they kept in case of emergency. It had about 400 dollars and that's what she'd use for money. She didn't know where she would go, but she knew she had to get away from this horrible nightmare. 

Suddenly, she felt a little gust of wind against her cheek and some creaks in the floorboards. She knew that someone was behind her and dropped her bag. She formed fists out of her hands and turned around quickly to try and take the guy down. To her surprise, it was her school counselor.

"Prue...." she whispered.

Prue stood in front of her with sympathetic eyes put her hands up in defense in case Sam did decide to strike. "Sam..."

"What are you doing here?? What....do....why...what happened to them downstairs?? Where did I go...What...." Sam started many questions that she wanted to get out, but was unable to finish them. She broke down into tears and started to sob once more. 

"Oh hon...." Prue whispered as she took Sam into an embrace. She rubbed her back and held her tight. Sam cried into her shoulder and hugged her as if she was never to let go. "I don't know what's happening to me...." she whispered. Prue pulled her away to look her into the eye. "Sam...what are you doing here?? You're supposed to be at the manor....." she started. Sam pulled away from her grasp and the look of fear returned to her eyes. 

"What....how did you know I was there??? Who were those people??? You're...you're IN THIS TOO! What...What....Who....You're with them!! You're trying to kidnap me...you're with the people who killed them downstairs!!" she screamed. Sam grabbed her backpack and tried to run out but Prue grabbed her so that she couldn't move.

"Sam, you have to listen to me. There's a lot of things that you don't know...that I need to explain to you. You need to listen to everything I have to say...."

"How can I??? Huh??? All this weird crap is happening to me!!! I make things stop and I make things blow up and I teleport and it's all happening tonight....the only parents I've ever known are gone downstairs and I have people who are out to get me who YOU could be working with!! I can't trust anyone...this is too unreal....IT'S TOO UNREAL."

She tried to escape but Prue held her tight and wouldn't let her go. "Sam, look at me. Look at me....please." she pleaded. Sam turned to Prue and they were eye to eye once more. 

"Sam....you have to know something....and there's a reason why they....you were gone....it's complicated. Your uncle probably told you before he...."

"He was delirious....He didn't mean anything he said..."

"But it's true Sam. You're....magic. You're a witch. You have powers, that is why you have been doing these weird things....Your parents were magical."

Sam stared at her in disbelief as she talked. "Your aunt and uncle weren't related to you at all. Your parents left you with them for protection, because you were to be hidden from other magical people for your and their safety . They were guardian angels, called whitelighters. So am I....I'm one of those whitelighters who was sent to protect you...but there's more...."

"WHAT?? You're going just as insane as Uncle Art....Now let me GO!"

"Sam....your mother was my sister.....and we were together a long time ago, until I passed away and turned into a whitelighter. I'm your aunt Sam....."

" I HAVE NO PARENTS! THEY LEFT ME....AND YOU'RE LYING!" she cried. Prue kept hold of her and tried to reason. Suddenly , Prue stopped and listened in the background. Sirens were heading towards the house and they were coming closer and closer. 

__

'Crap....the cops. I have to get Sam out of here....' Prue thought.

"Sam...hold on." she said. Sam was confused as Prue held her shoulder and orbed out of the house. Before they knew it, they were some place else, Sam just didn't know where they were. "How....how'd you do that?? What....what is all this???"

"It's a power. It's called orbing. It's what you did when you thought you teleported. It's a whitelighter power. When you stopped time, you were freezing time, that's one of your powers too. So was the exploding.....you take after your mother a lot....." Prue said, talking to Sam as calm as possible. 

"But...magic isn't real. It can't be real....Magic is for storybooks and....it's for little kiddie birthday parties and...."

"But it is real Sam. Magic is all around us. Everything that you thought didn't exist, does. There are witches and warlocks and angels and fairies. But then there are also demons and darklighters, and other things....that are bad. I am on the side of good...so is your mother and your father."

Sam paused, trying to process everything Prue was saying. She was still in disbelief, but something was telling her that it was all true, and it was all real. 

"Still don't believe me?" Prue said. She looked around the place they were in and found a vase of flowers by a wall. She picked them up and looked towards Sam. Sam stared at her, confused. Prue smiled. "Here Sam, catch!!" she said as she threw the vase hard towards Sam. Sam shrieked as the vase came in midair toward her. She threw her arms out, hoping to stop it from crashing into her. 

She opened her eyes and saw that the vase was still in the middle of the air, as if somebody paused the scene. She looked wide-eyed towards the vase, and walked towards it. She touched it gently and jumped back, afraid it would fall, but it was completely frozen. She looked to where Prue was but she wasn't there. She looked behind her and suddenly Prue was there. "BOO!" she said. 

Sam gasped in surprise and to her surprise, disappeared in blue and white swirling lights for a minute, then materialized back to the same place where she was standing. "What the...."

Prue nodded her head. "And those were only half of your powers. There's a lot that even I don't know about yet....Since you're supposed to be the most powerful being on the Earth. It's quite complicated."

Sam looked at her, with confusing yet believing eyes. She took her eyes off Prue and suddenly caught sight of the wall behind her. Many plaques were arranged in rows on the wall, and she realized that Prue had orbed them into a mausoleum. One plaque caught Sam's eye and she walked over to it to read it. 

**__**

Prudence Halliwell

Born 1970- 2000

Sam ran her hands over the metal letters on the plaque and looked at it with awe. She stopped her examining and turned to Prue. Prue had her hands shoved in her pant pockets and was looking at the plaque as if she were remembering something dear to her. Sam looked up to her with some sympathetic eyes, but they were also eyes of fear. "That's....you?"

Prue nodded. "I remember watching in this exact same spot when my sister Piper cried as she expressed how she felt now that I was gone. How much she hated me that I left....how much she missed me so much, how much she relied on me to keep her safe....to be her big sister throughout her whole life...." Prue sighed. "She doesn't deserve all this...."

Prue turned to Sam and kneeled so that they were eye level to each other. "That sister that I was just talking about....is your mother. You met up with her a little earlier. The woman from P3."

Sam stopped cold. She remembered how that woman looked familiar, and how that woman was the only one unfrozen once her so called "power" froze the whole club. She remembered how that woman had looked at her in a totally different way once they were close to each other, and how her eyes seemed so warming to her in a weird way. It all made some sense.....could that woman be her mother? But why would she leave her with her aunt and uncle like that? And who was her father?

"Well...then....who's my father?"

Prue stopped and smiled. She reached into the back pocket of her pants and pulled out a small photograph. "I have a feeling you'll remember this guy." she said, as she handed the crumpled photograph to Sam.

"Your uncle took this picture when you were about 10 months old.....Leo had just a little time away from the Elders where they weren't watching and went to see you for your birthday. He was so happy once he saw your bright eyes and that great baby smile of yours....and I remember he wouldn't stop apologizing for leaving you....." Prue said.

Sam stared at the photograph, her heart feeling warm but still drenched in fear. She stared at the photo, that had the blonde haired violent man she met earlier at the house smiling and holding Sam in his arms. Suddenly a little mental vision came into her head, of this man comforting her after a horrible nightmare, and staying with her till she fell asleep. She was only about 4, and didn't exactly know who the man was, but somehow knew she wasn't bad.....

Sam remembered it clearly now. Her heart felt heavy and the thought of her father loving her that much almost brought tears to her eyes.

"Sam, your parents loved you so much....but because of certain complications with another....let's just call them a higher powers.....they couldn't keep you or else they or you could have suffered a harsh punishment. They didn't want to let you go honey, but they just had to. They were devastated after you left, nothing was the same. The other two women you saw at the house were my other two sisters, and your two other aunts. They were Paige, and Phoebe. They loved you just as much, and so did I......" Prue continued.

Sam remembered Ms. Matthews from the school and realized that she was one of the two women at the house. Was that another coincidence? She didn't recognize the other woman, but if Ms. Matthews was her aunt, then she wouldn't mind that much after the kindness she showed at her school. 

"I understand that part....what I don't get...is who killed my aunt and uncle??"

Prue stayed silent for a bit until she let out a huge sigh. "Sam, those were magical beings too, but they were evil. They are called darklighters, and they look for ways to terminate us whitelighters, plus they want to stop our good work and replace with evil....there's much more to it, but we'll leave it there."

"Why did they have to kill them?? Why were they after me...."

"I'm not sure I know the whole story.....The reason you only got your powers now is because they were bound by magic, so other evil people wouldn't sense you. But when your aunt and uncle passed, your powers were released since they were the ones who held the bindings to your powers. I guess other demons or darklighters sensed your powers, and being evil, they want to steal it from you. Your parents and your aunts were just protecting you...."

Sam leaned against the wall and put her head back. It was a lot to process, but something in her chest was telling her to believe it and that it was all true. Something in her head told her that it all made sense and she knew it all along that her life was different than others. But this different? She finally made up her mind and decided to believe it, since that's all she could rely on right now.

"So...my powers are back and people are trying to kill me and steal my powers?"

"If you want to put it that way....."

"Where are my mom and dad?" 

"They're...probably looking for you right now...."

Sam paused and looked down at the floor. Suddenly a surge of anger went through her and she felt some sort of hatred toward her parents. "I still don't understand why they had to leave me...."

Prue tried to reason. "Sam...you have to understand it was the best for all of them...."

"If they loved me....they wouldn't have." she said bitterly. A silence was present between them until Prue heard a sensing jingle in her mind that was alerting her to leave. She glanced at Sam and looked to the door of the mausoleum. "Oh no....they're coming."

Sam glanced up at Prue, confused. "What? Who's coming?" she asked. Prue glanced a worried look and finally gave a sigh, deciding what to do. "Sam, I have to leave you.....but do not mention me in front of everyone you got it?"

"What? Why are you leaving me? What if evil people try and come get me and you're not here to help me??" 

"Trust me, you'll be safe...but you have to promise not to mention me to ANYONE....promise? If people find out I was with you, then it won't be good."

"But who's coming....?

"Promise or not??" Prue said with anxious eyes, knowing they were drawing closer and closer and she couldn't risk being seen, or it would be the end of her and she would have to give up protecting Sam. That couldn't happen. Sam gave up on asking questions and nodded. "I promise." she said. Prue gave her a warm smile before leaving in shiny blue and white swirling orbs. 

Just as Prue left, the door swung open and Sam gasped in fear as the loud noise surprised her. She was scared it was some darklighter, who Prue said would try to kill her, but instead four familiar heads came through the door.

Piper, Phoebe, Paige and Leo had found Sam's location and Sam was speechless as she stared at Leo and Piper with shock in silence. She didn't know what to do now.

**__**

To be continued.....Stay tuned for Chapter 15 of "Separation."

A/n: Sorry you guys....had to end it there. The chapter was getting too long, and it was about time that I had to separate the other parts into another chapter. I hope you liked this one....Don't forget to read and review!


	15. Confessing their Past

A/N: Hi Everybody! (hi dr. nick! err...i mean steph!) Well...I finally got the nicks to update. Well a lot's happened, I haven't gotten the chance to write since I've been on vacation then came back and started summer school and started real school. It's been crappy. So sorry if I took so long. Thanks for everyone who reviewed the last chapter! Enjoy ;)

Oh and a word of WARNING TO YOU:

This chapter is mostly talk...so if its boring I'm sorry? Being the stupid dramatic writer I am, I had to include all this talk.....I even got tired of putting quotation marks on XDDD

****

Separation-_ Chapter 15_

'What do I do? I can't just go up to her and start telling her that she's my daughter and that she's a witch and an evil force is after her way beyond powerful powers. After the way she acted at the house....so scared. Scared of me. My own daughter is scared of me.'

Piper stood still in her position. She didn't want to make any sudden moves, and she didn't want to do anything that would scare Sam off. She had to keep her calm, but how could she do that when she wasn't even calm herself? Everything big has happened in only a few hours.....everything that meant the world to her. Leo is back. Her daughter was put back in her life, but she wasn't even sure that Sam wanted to be a part of her life. 

Piper knew she would break if she had to let go of her again.

"Hi.....Sam." Piper said, not exactly knowing what to say. Sam's eyes were widened, and her mouth was open as if she were about to say something, but had lost her voice.

"We're....not here to hurt you. I'm sorry we didn't exactly have a great introduction last time....but you have to understand that I, we just want to make sure you're safe. I know it's weird that you've never seen us before and we probably know a lot of things about you, and it was frightening to see us.......act that way back at the house, but we're not here to hurt you. We're....friends." Piper said as calmly as she could. 

"It's really complicated to explain but...you're in danger Sam. And we really need you safe, and need to protect you...." Leo said, joining into the peace talks. Paige and Phoebe stayed silent, not knowing what to do. Since it was Leo's and Piper's daughter, they seemed to want to handle the situation by themselves and they didn't want to interfere.

Sam sighed. "I know." she whispered. "I know....you won't hurt me. And I know that you're more than just friends." 

Piper and Leo glanced at each other, thinking the same exact thing. _'Does she already know who we are?' _they thought. _'But...how?'_

Phoebe glanced at Paige and walked up to Sam and laid comforting hand on her shoulder. She gave Sam a warm smile and Sam felt a little comfortable. "I know that this can be pretty confusing. I mean, this night whole night has probably been even more confusing than you could imagine. I know.....that you're not sure what to do, or who to trust now since everything has changed a lot....but I promise that you can trust us. We don't have to be anything you could identify with. But you have to know that you can trust us." Phoebe said. She held her hand out to Sam and Sam smiled and took it.

"I.....I can trust you." she whispered. 

Piper glanced over at Leo and Paige and smirked. _'Leave it to Phoebe to gain her trust....'_ she thought. Paige interrupted the moment and spoke up.

"You guys, we better leave. Especially with Sam out in the open, it's sort of dangerous to be staying in a mausoleum when we know who's after her." she reminded them. They all agreed while Sam just stayed silent. Prue had told her someone was after her, someone dangerous and she was afraid as hell. She wrapped her arms around herself, trying to make herself feel better and less uncomfortable. Everything was happening so fast, with the death of her aunt and uncle, the discovery of her weird abilities, the story of her parents and her school counselor being her guardian angel not to mention her deceased aunt. And now she was actually going home with her....biological parents. Her so called family. 

Paige, Phoebe , Piper and Leo looked around the mausoleum and noticed something vaguely familiar about the place. Paige looked behind her and gasped. "This is....the mausoleum where Prue is." she said. Phoebe and Piper glanced at each other and Leo looked at them both. "Could it be.....coincidence? A really, really weird coincidence?" Phoebe asked Leo. Leo shrugged and then turned to Sam. 

"Sam....do you....know anyone named Prue Halliwell?" he asked. 

Sam stood still in her tracks, reluctant of what to say. Her mouth hung open but she didn't know what she should say, since Prue made her promise not to mention her in front of them. She said something about how they couldn't know she was alive and kicking. They all gave Sam anxious looks, trying to fit all these pieces of this supernatural puzzle together. Sam was about to say something, when something orbed in with dark orbs behind them. 

About 6 darklighters orbed into the mausoleum, all armed with crossbows. One of them looked around and once caught sight of Sam they pointed. "The girl. Get her. He wants her alive." he told the other darklighters. The darklighters headed towards Sam, following the other darklighter's orders. Sam screamed in shock and tried to run, but the darklighter caught hold of her by her wrist and pulled her into his grasp.

"NO!" Leo screamed. Phoebe jumped up and levitated towards the darklighter that held Sam, kicking him in the face, making him lose his grip. Piper shot her hands toward two darklighters and blew them both up. Another darklighter shot an arrow towards Leo but Paige called it's name just in time and made it hit the darklighter it came from. Phoebe continued kicking one darklighter and Leo decided he abandoned his pacifism a LONG time ago and fought the other darklighter. 

One had heated up his hand and was about to lay it on Leo's face to burn him but Piper blew him up. Sam was stuck with another darklighter, and he was trying to catch her and get a stern hold but she kicked him in the shin and let go of his grasp. He recovered and went after her, grabbing her shoulders but her hands shot out towards him and the darklighter froze in his position. Sam, still not used to seeing people freeze all of a sudden stayed in shock as she set her powers. She became loose of his grasp and ran towards Piper. 

Piper saw the frozen darklighter and blew him up. Sam ran behind Piper for cover and Piper held her back. "Stay behind me." she whispered, determined to protect her from danger. 

There was only one darklighter left and he knocked Phoebe into a wall with a punch. He saw Sam behind Piper and a crossbow appeared in his hand. Almost as quickly as the crossbow appeared, an arrow was shot at them. Piper took Sam and pushed her down to the floor with herself covering her so she wouldn't get hurt and the arrow would miss them. The arrow hit the wall, and Paige tele-orbed it to the darklighter's chest so that it exploded into flames and was gone. 

Piper stood up and helped Sam get herself together. She looked around the room, checking if everyone was okay. They all nodded.

"Okay, now we REALLY need to get out of here. We'll be safer at the manor." she said. Leo ran over to Sam and Piper and laid his hands on both of their shoulders. Paige held Phoebe's hand and all five of them orbed out in unison. 

****

Sam sat on the couch, looking in amazement at Leo's glowing palms. He moved his hands all around Sam, checking for any sign of a bruise or wound or anything. Piper hit Leo on the shoulder and Leo stopped.

"Geez Leo, she already said she wasn't hurt." 

"I'm just CHECKING, Piper." he said angrily in reply. 

Sam stayed silent, not wanting to get in the middle of everything. She had a good feeling, knowing someone was worried about her safety. But that didn't mean she was ready to call these people "mom" and "dad". 

"Do you want some water? Or anything? If you're hungry, I can whip something up in the kitchen faster than you know it.....or Paige can order a pizza?" Piper asked nicely. Sam thought for a moment. Inside she felt her stomach growling, but she didn't feel like eating or didn't have an appetite after everything. She shook her head no. 

"Are you cold or something? Do you want a blanket or a sweater or something.....or maybe you want to change? Paige has a lot of clothes that would fit you...." Piper asked anxiously, worried if she was uncomfortable. 

"No, really..." Sam smirked a little. "I'm fine. Really, I'm okay..." 

"Look who the worry wart is now." Leo whispered to Piper. Piper hit Leo without taking her smile off Sam. "Shut up. Nobody asked you to talk." she said, with her teeth clenched. Sam had to smile and giggle a little at their sarcastic behavior. 

Piper sighed and sat down on one of the tables next to the couch so she was facing Sam. Leo did the same and went to Piper's side. He leaned on his knees and they spent about two minutes facing each other in complete silence.

"I'll be totally honest with you. I don't know exactly how to start with all this. I mean, you must be really freaked out and.....totally scared coming home with a bunch of strangers that have magical powers. I would be too." Leo said. Sam nodded and shrugged at the same time, not sure about how she should act. "Yeah..."

"There's a lot of things we need to explain.....but first, I'm going to let you do the explaining. What happened once you left P3 and....how did you get to that mausoleum?" Piper asked. Leo and Piper waited in their curiosity while Sam stood still trying to figure out what to say. She couldn't reveal Prue's identity, and Prue took up most of the story. Then again, she felt sick to her stomach when she thought about the past events of the day, and how everything had happened so fast. 

"I'm sorry. I just don't feel like talking right now...." Sam said, not wanting to see the anxiety in Leo's and Piper's eyes. "I'm sorry...." she whispered, closing her eyes and sighing. She laid her head back on the couch and covered her face with her palms as a sign of frustration. She felt tears threatening to fall, but held them back. Suddenly, she felt a comforting hand on her knee.

"There's no reason you should be sorry. You're just an....innocent in all this." Leo said, as Sam took her hands away from her face and looked at Leo. She realized that looking into his eyes just made her feel more safe and secure and felt like she actually.....belonged. 

"There are a lot of things that you're unclear about and you're unsure about. We're only here to help straighten that out." he said. Sam nodded. "I'm going to uh....straighten the portion of those bothering things out that I know I can help you with." Leo said. He cleared his throat and stood up.

"My name's Leo Wyatt. I'm way past my 60th birthday but I'm not even sure what my age is because I seriously don't keep track anymore. I lived and grew up in San Francisco my whole life, and I was studying to be a doctor until I enlisted into the army for World War 2 as a medic. I.....died in the battle of Guadalcanal when I was bandaging a soldier's head wound. A higher power allowed me to become reborn into something called a whitelighter, shortly after I died....."

Sam flinched at the term. Prue said she was a whitelighter, and Prue also mentioned that he was a whitelighter. She stayed silent as she listened to Leo tell his story, a little bit curious to know who he really was.

"A whitelighter is a guardian angel or a guide to other beings. We protect and watch our charges who are good people who are destined to do an even greater good, and help them in any way we can. We have powers too, just like yours. We can kind of teleport to places we need to go....we can heal physical wounds and we can do a bunch of other stuff. It's all part of the whole magical world. 

Being a whitelighter was everything I loved doing.....I was helping people and being the sort of doctor that I always wanted to be with a little bit of psychologist mixed into it. I thought it was going very well....until I met someone that I found I loved even more. Her name was Piper. Piper Halliwell......" Leo said, looking at Piper. 

Piper smiled and flushed a light red. Leo smiled back at Piper and held her hand while he turned back to Sam. Sam had to smile a bit, and had to admit that their relationship was cute. As she saw Leo look at Piper longingly, she could tell that they were totally in love with each other, but she saw a bit of sadness in their eyes, as if they thought there was a possibility they could never see each other again. 

"Piper and I had some rough roads.....we loved each other but we couldn't be together, well since my bosses 'up there'" Leo pointed towards the ceiling, "didn't allow me and her to be together since she was a witch, a special kind of witch and I was a whitelighter. They didn't allow relationships like that. They tend to be very....very.....very heartless.

As our love for each other grew, my bosses' anger grew even worse. They started keeping an eye on us and even called the two of us up there to tell us to either break it off or she and her sisters gets a new whitelighter. We couldn't let that happen.....and we couldn't just 'break it off'. I was panicked and I did the only thing I could do that would keep us together and I proposed. But it still didn't work. Just as we were about to get married.....my bosses' caught us and we were put on some sort of probation....and after another big event that broke humongous rules, we were finally sentenced to stop seeing each other and they were assigned a new whitelighter. They even threatened to.....kill me."

Leo slowed down and stayed silent for a bit. Piper, reminiscing the events taken place as Leo told the story felt heartbroken just thinking about her past and she looked at her daughter and started hating the Elders all over again. Sam looked down, feeling sorry for Leo and Piper. It was like one big love story, but with a sad ending. She had no idea that people went through these kind of things, then again she had no idea that magic EXISTED let alone people like witches and whitelighters.

"I thought that having to be kept away from Piper would affect us in a big way....but our love only grew stronger, even though we couldn't see each other as much as we wanted to. I still sneaked over to her, and....we acted as if nothing were keeping us apart. Then a couple months later, Piper's sister Prue died and Paige came into our lives. That's when things really affected us and it was a hard time to go through. Piper and I tried to comfort each other as much as possible through the time of grief......"

__

'Prue was telling the truth....' Sam thought. 

"A little while later......something surprising happened. After that....Piper and I had a daughter, one beautiful baby girl, I'll tell you. I mean...she had my eyes and Piper's beauty and was just......the best thing that ever happened to my life. I knew that the moment I set eyes on her, the moment I held her. She was.....some miracle. A big symbol that mine and Piper's love could never be broken apart......" Leo said, grinning to himself. As he talked about Sam, his eyes sparked with happiness and Sam felt as if she were about to start tearing. She noticed that he were telling a big fairy tale to her, and never jumped to the fact that Sam was indeed the one who had been the best thing in his life. 

She had never felt so loved.....so **wanted.**

"What happened to her? Your daughter....." Sam asked. 

Leo's face suddenly turned sadder. "With all the rules my bosses' had and with the danger of Piper or myself getting hurt.....we were forced to let go of her. I had to keep her with the two of my best friends to keep her safe and to keep her from being revealed to the higher power. She was so special to us......I just wanted to go celebrate her coming into the world, but it just couldn't happen."

"We had to give her up unwillingly. We went to a church.....where we gave her to a nun to take care of and then I guess Leo called his two best friends to take care of her so she would be protected and safe. We only had two days with her until I had to give her up.....it was probably one of the hardest days of my life. And knowing that I went on not knowing what she looked like, or what her first word was, or when she learned to walk, or any of that stuff that a mother's supposed to know. I never learned anything......" Piper said, interrupting Leo to finally speak up. 

"After the day she left our lives, it became harder for Piper and I to see each other. Not only because of the strict surveillance of my bosses, but because of the fact that we felt we didn't need each other as much. We felt that we needed the little girl in our lives even more. I mean just the sight of seeing each other, brings memories, suffering, pain and tears in our eyes. Soon, my bosses turned even more stricter than before and it was practically a year before I could see Piper again.

But.....something always kept me going. Because I knew that I had a little girl....just alive and healthy and growing up to be a beautiful young lady....that kept me alive. My love for my daughter, and my love for Piper. I remember.....the last time I saw her. She was about five years old, and I sensed her in panic and in trouble. It was late and night and I orbed over there to check on her......and it turned out she had a nightmare. She didn't cry, and acted like I wasn't even a stranger....but I stayed with her till she fell asleep. I don't think I was the same after that day.....happier I guess." 

Sam didn't know what to say to their story. Leo stopped talking and they stood in silence once more for a moment. After what Sam heard, it seemed as if Leo and Piper had gone through so much pain.....and that they loved their daughter a lot. Was that really her? Was it her that they were really talking about? She knew she always wondered where her parents were or how they felt about her but she never realized how much they could care for her. 

"That's our story. And I hope that clears a few things up.....after all that....do you think you're ready to talk now?" Leo asked. 

Sam looked away, still speechless. She didn't know what she was feeling inside. Her emotions were jumping from one conclusion to the next. Sad for the pain Leo and Piper went through and how she missed out on them. Happy that she finally knows her parents actually cared at one point. But then Sam started to remember how much pain she had felt when she was a kid....how never knowing her parents brought her so many limitations on things she had always longed to do. Nobody was ever there for her to call her their 'daughter'. There was always SOMEBODY that had to ask where her parents were.....and only SHE never had an answer to the question. Only SHE was the one who never made cards on mother and father's day. 

Sam clenched her fist, and felt a sudden burst of anger. 

"You should have tried harder." she muttered. Leo and Piper heard this, and their eyes widened a bit, but looked as if they weren't surprised she had said it.

"You could have tried harder!!! For your daughter!!! I mean.....I can't believe you never even BOTHERED to just see her after 15 years! How would she feel? She grew up with a couple of people she CAN'T call her parents with empty holes inside of her because she always felt that something was missing. How could just leave her alone?? You should have tried harder!!"

Sam started to cry, not being able to control her sadness and anger any longer. Leo tried to talk, but Sam didn't stop. Piper's eyes showed signs of water works.

"You should have KNOWN that her first word was 'star'. You should have KNOWN that she started walking when she was 13 months old! You should have KNOWN that her favorite food is pizza....and she loves old movies with Gene Kelly in them, or that she likes to read and to dance and she gets good grades and that she won a lot of good citizenship and honor roll awards in eighth grade plus the MVP award for the soccer team!!! You should have KNOWN that she looks exactly like YOU!" Sam cried, pointing to Piper. 

She stopped for a minute, letting her tears flow until she ran from the couch away from Leo and Piper and ran up the stairs, not knowing exactly where to go. Leo and Piper looked at each other with worried glances and stood up.

"I _should_ have known." Piper said, shaking her head and burying her face into her hands. "She's right. I should have been there for her and I wasn't."

"Piper, you know as well as I do that it was impossible to do that and it's not your fault......she grew up in such a good environment. Think of the environment she would have grown up in if she grew up here with us, and with the hassle of the Elders and the constant demonic attacks."

"Well, what do we do now? It's like she wants so badly not to accept everything that's happening. Everything that has to do with us and her and her life and....."

"I'll go talk to her." a voice said behind Piper. They turned around and saw Paige standing at the doorway. "I think I should go talk to her." 

"Paige....you don't have to—"

"Piper, she's my niece. I want to." Paige said, before heading to the 2nd floor of the manor. Piper and Leo sighed and just went to the kitchen to wait and see what would happen next.

****

As Paige climbed the stairs of her house, mixed emotions ran through her. First of all, she had no idea what she was doing or what she was going to say once she found Sam. Second of all, Sam's situation related a lot to hers when she was a teenager. Paige never knew anything about her real parents and she was also given up for adoption which always made Paige feel empty and hurt that she was a child that was given away and not loved.

Paige's parents also died when she was in high school, right in front of her eyes and she was also just introduced into the world of magic, and was just getting used to it. But the difference was, Paige took these things one at a time. Poor Sam had to have it put on her all at once.

She walked around, checking room by room, and when she finally got to the last room at the end of the hall, the guest room, she found Sam huddled up against the side of the bed, her back facing the door. Clouds of smoke surrounded her and she didn't hear Paige come in. Paige walked in and closed the door.

"Sam?"

Sam turned around, revealing a single cigarette between her fingers. "Ms. Matthews?" she said, startled. 

"Please, call me Paige." Paige said, walking towards Sam and she sat on the edge of the bed next to Sam, who was sitting on the floor. Sam just turned around back around. She was about to take another puff of the cigarette, but Paige held out her hand. 

"Cigarette." she said. The cigarette, dematerialized out of Sam's hands and appeared onto Paige's palm. Paige took the cigarette, and put it out on the windowsill, then threw it out the window. "Smoking's bad for you....if you haven't noticed already?" Paige said, sitting back down on the bed, once again being reminded of herself. 

"It doesn't matter. I only do this when I'm stressed out." 

"How long you've been smoking?"

"I dunno...couple months?" 

"So you've still got time to quit. I advise you do that now." Paige said. Sam looked up at her, with a hard look. "Did they send you up here to give me a lecture on smoking? Or did you come up here for something else? No offense or anything...." 

"Sam, you know as well as I do that your parents never meant for you to grow up this way. They had no other choice....it was just something they had to do, even if they didn't want to do it."

"They still should have at least kept contact. I mean they had no idea how it was for me...to have no parents, and to just live out of a lie."

"But you still have no idea how much they've done for you. I mean.....think of it this way. How was it growing up? Did your aunt and your uncle treat you well? Did they celebrate your birthday, and get you gifts for Christmas, and take care of you when you were sick? Didn't you feel so safe with them, and didn't have any trouble with them whatsoever?"

"Well.....kinda yeah."

"You would have never gotten that if we had kept you. We're witches....we get demon attack every stinking day. You would be living a life in constant danger, and constant fear. Not only of demons, but of getting exposed by mortals. You would have to live a life of caution when you go to school, and you would probably have grown up a tired wreck. But you didn't have to go through all that. You had a nice life.....and Leo and Piper gave that to you. You can't be mad at that. You also have no idea how hard it was for them to let you go. It's not that easy to give away your only kid......" 

As Paige finished her big speech lecture, Sam stayed silent. Paige anxiously waited for an answer, but realized Sam was silently crying. She stood up off the bed and sat on the floor next to Sam and put an arm over her. Sam laid her head on her shoulder a bit.

"Hey....it'll be okay. I promise." Paige said, trying to comfort Sam but not knowing exactly how.

"It's just that I don't know how to accept all of this. It's too hard. My aunt and uncle are dead and my parents come back to life with this whole thing about being in magic and stuff. I just can't accept it. Before my aunt and uncle died, I screamed at them saying to stop acting like my parents cause they weren't.....and I never got the chance to say sorry and that they were my parents for taking such good care of me. And....and they're just gone.... and it's my fault...." Sam said, her voice unclear from all her tears. Paige sighed and tried to comfort her.

"Hey now, don't think that way. It wasn't your fault. I guess.....dying was just their destiny. And they died trying to protect you..."

"Exactly....if I wasn't such a burden to them and if nobody was after me they would have never died. It's my fault that they're dead right now."

"Look, everything happens for a reason. You can't keep thinking that this was your fault, Sam or else it'll tear you apart. You have to move on somehow....and you have to accept that it was their destiny and there was nothing you could do to change it, no matter how much you think there is."

"How would you know?"

Paige was silent for a bit and was hesitant in her speech. "My....parents died when I was about your age too."

Sam sniffled and stopped crying. "They did?"

"Yeah. I guess my story's kind of like yours. I didn't know my sisters all my life, I met them when I was a little older. My mom and dad had to give me away for adoption and I lived with my adopted parents for the majority of my childhood.....and when I was younger I wasn't exactly the best kid. I did really bad stuff....like party all night and drink and skip classes....and it was just really bad. One day, I told my parents that they weren't really my parents, and the next day we got into a car accident, and they died right in front of my eyes and I couldn't do anything about it. Then later on after Prue, our older sister died, I found my two other sisters and was introduced into magic. It's been a really rough road...but somehow I'm okay."

"How did you deal with all that?"

"Well, I had to move on. I couldn't dwell on my parents forever....sure it was really heartbreaking that they were gone, but then later one, I had to realize that it wasn't my fault that the accident happened, and they would have wanted me to move on. Just like your aunt and uncle would want you to move on, and to accept their parents for who they are. Your parents are good people Sam.....They are probably the most heartbroken people in the whole world, because they had to let you go."

Sam knew inside that she had to agree. After she heard Leo and Piper's story, her heart was absolutely heartbroken to hear all the pain and suffering those two had to go through. Maybe, they really did want to be in her life. Maybe, she should let them, since she knew that she wanted to be in their lives as much as they wanted to be in hers. Sam bit her lip.

"I'm scared. I'm afraid I might lose them again. Like I did with my aunt and uncle. What if I bring nothing but trouble?" she muttered under her breath. Paige responded with a warm smile.

"You could never bring trouble. In fact....I think the house would be a little happier with you running around. And as long as me and Phoebe are living, you three will never be split apart. I promise you that." she said. Sam smiled and gave in to her feelings.

"Thanks Ms. Matthews..."

"Oh please, you're making me sound old! Call me Paige." 

Sam bit her lip. "Thanks Aunt Paige." 

"No problemo, my wonderful niece!" Paige said, and they both shared a quick hug. After they let go, Paige was reminded of a topic she wanted to discuss with Sam. "Oh yeah....Sam...I've been meaning to talk to you about something."

"What?"

"Okay....you were hurt before, and I went to your house to save you and to take you back to my place so you could be healed. But I saw someone else there before me. I saw, my sister. Prue."

Sam flinched, and began to feel a little nervousness. "Who?"

"Sam....no offense, but you suck when you lie? I think maybe it's a whitelighter thing, but I won't get into that now. It's just that, I was watching you while Leo and Piper was telling their story. And you looked as if you were surprised, but as if you already knew. There is no way you could have known unless you read their minds or someone told you first. And there was you ending up at Prue's mausoleum. And not to mention her helping me save you. She has something to do with your life....I can feel it."

"I....I..."

"Please....just tell me. Where is Prue? How do you know her...."

"She told me not to tell." Sam finally spat out. Paige sighed, knowing her suspicions were right. She was about to ask another question before Phoebe burst into the room with a panicked look. Sam and Paige were startled and Paige was the first to notice the panic spread across Phoebe's face.

"Phoebe, what's wrong? Is a demon down there?"

Phoebe shook her head. "No." she said. "Worse."

She left a beat of silence between them before she spoke again. "Patrick came back and he's downstairs. With the Elders."

**__**

Stay tuned for Chapter 16 of "Separation".

A/N: Remember to review everyone! I'll try my HARDEST to update as soon as possible. It's just that with school, I can only get like a paragraph a day on here....so thanks to everyone who was reviewing before. You have no idea how much it motivates me everyday! 


	16. The Elders

 SEQ CHAPTER \h \r 1A/N: Whoa  I was way surprised with all the feedback I got on the last chapter...I was thinking you guys would have fallen asleep by now  But thank you for staying up  I got around to writing a new chapter...so here it is  Enjoy  I'm writing it for you guys      

Note: Since I TOTALLY ignored the season five finale and because I planned out this whole story in an outline before I wrote it, I made the Elders a small group of seven people.....so please don't get confused  Okay, you can read now 

**Separation- _Chapter 16_**

**__**

"What, are you KIDDING?" Paige said, a little angered and nervous at the same time. Phoebe gave a frustrated, worried sigh and shook her head. 

"No, Paige. I'm not." she said, shaking her head and burying her face into her hands. "This cannot be happening....this is just too out of hand....."

"They can't be downstairs    In our own house   God dammit....."

"And with Leo and with Piper and with the unspeakable wrath and the....."

"They've never come down before  It can't be THIS bad  I–"

"And with the hassling of our whitelighter, it just had to result in this...."

"I've never even seen what the heck they look like, I mean what do they expect to do "

"Who knows how much power they have....even though their powers are mental they can blow us to a wall or something...."

"They can't expect to separate them again and they can't expect to—"

Paige and Phoebe began to ramble on and on, not listening to each other but listening to their own endless comments instead. Sam stood on the side, confused and not knowing exactly what to do. She glanced from Phoebe to Paige back and forth until she decided to whistle. Phoebe and Paige stopped suddenly, and turned towards a puzzled Sam.

"Um....who are the Elders?" she asked, beginning to get a little worried and scared yet still clueless. Phoebe looked as if she were slapped in the face and went to Sam and put a hand on her shoulder. "Oh, god I'm sorry Sam....um....the Elders are well....."

"Leo's bosses that he was talking to you about earlier." Paige finished for Phoebe. Sam thought for a minute and then nodded. "Oh. OH....the ones that threatened to kill him and why I had to leave in the first place?" 

"Yep, those are the ones " Phoebe said, in a sarcastic and jittery voice. There was an awkward silence as Sam also started to get worried. "Are they um....gonna take me away or something?" she asked, not sure about what to expect. Phoebe shook her head. "No hon...don't worry about anything okay? We'll fix this....we won't let them do anything to you or to Piper or Leo." 

"Yeah.....besides, we have kind of a bargain with them. They can't really do anything to punish or hurt us since we _are_ the ones who protect the world from all evil. Not to brag...." Paige finished, trying to lighten up the mood, but Phoebe still looked pale. 

"Can I do anything to help?" Sam asked. "I don't really want to stand by and do nothing....and I don't want Piper and Leo to get hurt....." 

Phoebe gave Sam a reassuring smile. "That's really sweet of you honey....but the most you can do is stay here for now okay? Don't come down....I mean, we don't want to cause a sort of commotion downstairs. We'll be right back....but don't worry about anything." 

Sam still had an unsure look on her face, but shrugged and nodded her head. Phoebe started to walk out the door and Paige winked at Sam. "We'll be back kiddo, just make yourself comfortable while we deal with the old guys downstairs." she said. Sam smiled and nodded and gave a little wave while Paige walked out. 

Paige closed the door of the room, and saw Phoebe leaning against the wall. Phoebe looked extremely worried, stressed out, and shocked. Paige walked over to her. "What are we gonna do Pheebs?" she asked. Phoebe shook her head and shrugged.

"I don't know Paige. This is so serious....It had never gotten so out of hand before...."

"I don't know why you're so scared. I mean, they're the Elders, not the council of all evil. We can handle them."

"You don't understand Paige.....this is the reason Piper and Leo had to split up. They are capable of their so called 'unspeakable wrath' and they do turn to extreme consequences. We not only did something wrong.....they found out about a child that was never supposed to be born by a couple that was banished to be together and they found out that Leo almost killed our whitelighter. They have the power to just stop time in the world itself to deal with us."

Paige paused for a minute, and thought about Phoebe's statement. "What if they do something to Leo? What If they do something to Sam? We can't let that happen....."

"I know." Phoebe said. She started to bang her head into the wall. "This is just way too much for us and for Piper, not to mention my niece. She's gone through so much today, now she has the risk of seeing us being all executed in front of her EYES." 

"I think you're being a little too dramatic...." PAige said, rolling her eyes. "But, yeah I think you're right. She really doesn't deserve this right now.....Piper and Leo too. How are we going to fix this?" 

"I don't know, but we have to think of something. Let's go." Phoebe said, starting to walk to the stairs. She sounded as if she had trouble breathing. Paige noticed it, and glanced at Phoebe in an awkward way. "Phoebe, are you okay?" 

"Yes, of course." Phoebe said, but then paused. "Okay, no I'm not."

"What's up?? Why do you seem so tense.....?"

Phoebe shrugged and started to whimper. "I don't even know  I have been facing demons for more than a decade but for some reason I'm too terrified to face a bunch of people in ugly robes " 

She sighed to herself and Paige stood next to her trying to comfort her. Phoebe just shook her head. "It's just that with Piper and Leo and Sam…..since this all started it seems like it has been one bad situation after another. I have this gut feeling like I'm going to lose something all over again."

"Pheebs, just trust me on this. I don't really know what to say to make you feel confident or anything, but I have an instinct too. I have a really good feeling about this and I think that this may just end in a happy ending. I mean…..it's like I was sent to that school for a reason, and so all this could happen. I feel really comfortable saying that it's going to be okay."

Phoebe glanced at Paige and nodded. "Good point, and….thanks." 

They began to walk down the staircase. Paige started to feel a bit nervous and insecure, since she's never seen the Elders before. The two walked into the foyer, then opened the doors to the sunroom to find a bit of chaos. 

Paige saw about seven hooded people with bright white robes, wandering around the sunroom while Piper and Leo stood on the side, talking to Patrick. Phoebe and Paige walked in and left the door open behind them. Leo looked as if he were about to strangle Patrick who looked even more conceited than  he usually was. 

"How could you bring them here? How can you be so STUPID?" Leo said, angrily. Patrick merely shrugged. 

"Now, now Leo. You're lucky you're not banished to another realm already, so now I would be a little tiny bit grateful—"

"You dirty rat….you're no whitelighter. Just a little snitch and spy. Seeing you with wings makes me think about WHO they're recruiting these days."

"That hurt. That really hurt." Patrick said, semi-sarcastic. "But, just MAYBE, I became a whitelighter for a new quality they're looking for these days…it's called FOLLOWING THE RULES. Have you ever heard of that Leo, cause I don't think it's your best priority."

"Why you---" 

"Hey, stop it, you two " Paige exclaimed, coming in between them. Piper only shook her head, looking sick of the constant fighting going on in their house. "This is just not the time for a wrestling smackdown. Save it for another lifetime alright?" Paige said. Leo held back as Patrick shrugged and both of them turned away from each other. 

"Good. Everyone is here." One of the Elders said, as all of them turned around at the same time and faced the five. Paige, Piper and Phoebe were startled. Leo and Patrick didn't seem surprised at all. 

The Elders were a diverse mix of beings. There were seven of them, all with their hoods up but seemed to be extremely luminous. Three of the Elders were male Caucasians and were actually old. Two of them had silver beards, while the other only had silver long flowing hair. Two of the Elders were male African Americans but were middle aged. One had a few gray hairs in his beard, but was still quite young and the other had no beard at all. Another one of the Elders was a female Caucasian and was also quite old. She had white hair and had visible wrinkles on her face. The last Elder, was young man who looked like he was about 19 with dark brown hair and a little beard forming at his chin. 

"Let us begin." 

"What, don't we get an intro first?" Paige asked. Phoebe elbowed her. "Paige…" she muttered angrily. Paige merely shrugged. The female Elder spoke up. 

"The two with the beards are Joseph and Ramus and the one with the long hair is Maximus." She said, pointing her head towards the three male Caucasian men. Maximus seemed to grunt at the sound of his name and looked very angry. 

"The next one with the mixed color beard is Raphael, and the one next to him is Fredrick." She continued, pointing towards the African Americans. They nodded, confirming their names. 

"I am Cordelia, and the young one next to me….is Kevin." She said, concluding. 

Kevin grinned and Paige smirked. "What a name for an Elder…." She whispered to Phoebe. 

"I was a little late in becoming an Elder. That's why I have the normal name." Kevin explained. Maximus looked over to Kevin and gave him a grunt. "Enough. It seems there's an issue that we need to discuss. That is why we're here in the first place." 

"Yes, we need to address this." Raphael said, much calmer. 

"I don't see a problem here. You seem to be wasting your time." Piper said, acting disgusted. 

"The problem is, that yours and Leo's offspring exists when it's not supposed to. You broke the rules, and don't forget that your lover boy over here attacked me." Patrick said, butting in. 

"That's it Patrick, you're pushing it over the edge now. Why don't you just shut your mouth, since nobody asked you to talk." Paige spat out at him. 

"Silence. This quarrel isn't necessary." Cordelia interrupted. "We are here to address this with Piper and Leo, not with you Patrick or Paige."

"Is what Patrick says is true?  Does this child exist?" Fredrick asked. 

Piper and Leo paused for a minute until they finally nodded. "There are no lies anymore. Yes, she does exist. She's 14 years old since March. We disobeyed your rules, but with all due respect, we don't regret any part of it. She's the best thing that happened into our lives, and if I have to be punished, then let it be. But please, don't do anything to Piper and Sam. They don't deserve to be a part of this mess." Leo said. 

"Leo…"Piper said, trying to stop him but Leo shook his head. "No, Piper….you and Sam deserve to live in peace. I don't want to cause you anymore pain." He whispered. Piper held his hand. "We're in this together….whatever you go under, I'll be right there with you."

"Oh, give me a break  You heard them Elders  You heard them admit to their crime. Piper, Leo and their little nuisance need to be punished for what they've done." Patrick exclaimed, walking and pointing accusingly at Piper and Leo. Leo just stared angrily at Patrick, not wanting to start any violence in front of the Elders, and Piper kept holding Leo's hand.

"They've ignored your rules and disobeyed them without ANY shame. Even after your strict orders, they still chose to defy you." Patrick continued. "Nobody is higher than the law  I say that their crimes are so horrible, that they're practically ASKING for punishment, and if punishment is what they want, then it calls for heavy duty separation---" 

"THAT IS ENOUGH." Paige exclaimed. She walked up to Patrick and shook her head with a look of disgust towards him. She faced the Elders with such bravery and strong confidence. "This is ridiculous. Piper and Leo did nothing wrong  All they did was love each other, and if that's wrong then god, the world would be chaotic right now  All love does is bring good things, and Samantha is just nothing BUT good. It was love between a whitelighter and a witch that brought me here and helped fulfill the destiny of the charmed ones to reunite. You cannot FIGHT with that " 

"Paige is right. Whitelighters may not be totally alive, but they're still humane. They can't help feeling love in their hearts….it's just absurd that they have to be banned from their feelings." Phoebe said, stepping in. Piper and Leo gave thankful glances toward Paige and Phoebe. 

Patrick crossed his arms. "Sorry Paige, nice try. But that still doesn't help with breaking the law." 

"Silence. This is getting chaotic." Ramus said, stopping their arguments. Everyone stopped and turned towards the Elders to listen. 

"Now…." Joseph said, speaking up. "Paige….your speech was well spoken, and your bravery is admired. Piper and Leo's story have gone a long way….but we cannot ignore that they have broken the law. It is not entirely that we don't believe in the forces of nature and love, but we cannot ignore the rules that have been set in stone."

"Piper and Leo were given strict orders to stay away or to face consequences. Just because Piper is a charmed one, does not give her special rights. Witches are already allowed to find spouses in mortals or other witches in your world…..but whitelighters are strictly for their guide and protection. Not for love." Raphael continued.

"As Elders, we are to obey the rules we made, and so are you. By breaking that, there are consequences to face. We just haven't decided what is appropriate for the situation." Cordelia said. Paige and Phoebe were about to burst into an argument, when Leo touched Paige's shoulder and shook his head, not wanting to cause anymore trouble. Patrick stood there, with a look of victory. 

"Well, if I get any say in this, I agree with Patrick and think separation is the only solution. For Piper, Leo and the mysterious child." Maximus said, still looking angry. Leo suddenly looked up, hearing the unfair comment.

"What?? That's absurd  You can't separate Sam and Piper again  We've been separated her whole life  They don't deserve this, just punish me " 

"Quiet Leo. You were always a handful and I should have known that something like this would happen….you're lucky we're not clipping your wings and bansihing you from the heavens if that's what you would like. I'm pretty sure that the higher Council would agree with me." Maximus replied. "You never did anything right….breaking the rules as if you were higher than an Elder…."

Cordelia gave Maximus a hard look. "Maximus. That is enough." 

"Don't talk to Leo that way  He didn't do anything to you  He's done more good than any other whitelighter out there " Piper said in Leo's defense. Leo knew he couldn't say anything more but he still kept strong.  

"That's no way to talk to the Elders, Piper." Patrick said. 

"Why don't you shut your mouth. You've done enough talking today." Phoebe said to Patrick. 

Piper, Leo, Paige, Phoebe, Patrick and the Elders continued arguing about who was right and who was wrong. Their disputes seemed to be getting louder and louder and was all heard by Sam standing just outside the sunroom, hiding behind a wall in the foyer near the stairs. She peeked her head out to see some of the Elders, plus Paige and Phoebe through the slightly open doorway of the sunroom. She heard every word they had said since they had started talking, since she sneaked out of the bedroom right after Paige and Phoebe left. 

She sighed and felt even more troubling than she already was. It seemed that all this was happening because of her and she didn't like the feeling. She really didn't want anything to happen to her parents, nor her two aunts. She recognized the other guy, Patrick from the first time she woke up at the manor. She remembered it was the guy that had been pinned to the wall by her father, and that must have meant that he was probably a bad guy in all of this. 

Sam heard him say pretty harsh things about her parents and heard him include her in some of his statements. She took a mental note to not like him, ever. She could see that The Elders were really powerful people. If her superhero aunts were pretty nervous about them, that meant that they had a lot of power over them. 

All her thinking started to get her thirsty. She licked her dry lips and felt the need for a drink, but decided to try and ignore her craving since it wasn't really the time to raid the fridge. She tried to push the thought in the back of her mind, but something seemed to keep it in her front. 

_'Geez….I really want a coke…..'_ she thought.

Suddenly, she felt a sudden change in her environment. She looked down at her feet to find a can of coke in front of her. It had faint puffs of smoke around it, like it had appeared out of thin air. Sam was startled and jumped back, only to stare at the tempting can of pop. She walked towards it, and touched it with her finger, surprised to see that it was real.

She looked around, checking if someone else saw her, then grabbed the coke. She knew that she should have felt pretty freaked about what happened, but her thirst pretty much took over and she opened the Coke and gulped it down. 

"Pretty cool huh." 

Sam almost choked on her pop. She jumped at the sound of the voice. She looked up from her pop to see a middle aged man in robes leaning on the side of the door entrance from the living room to the foyer. She backed up and sat down on the stairs, afraid of his sudden appearance. She didn't recognize him, and thought he was one of those evil demons after her Prue told her about.

"Oh, don't worry, I'm not a demon…..not even close." He said. Sam's heart jumped.

"You….knew what I was thinking?" 

The guy smiled. "Yeah…that's one of my powers. I'm one of the Elders that came to visit. My name's Kevin." 

"Oh. Um….my name's Sam." Sam said in relief. She felt reassured and could sense that he wasn't there to hurt her. Kevin grinned. "Sorry for startling you earlier…..it was getting really loud and boring in there. I didn't want to stay….and I couldn't help myself but watch you. Powers are pretty cool, ain't it?" 

Sam nodded. "Were you the one who---"

"Did that?" Kevin said, pointing to the coke can. Sam nodded but Kevin replied with a simple shake of his head. "Oh, no way. I have powers, but stuff that big can probably be only done by you. I have to compliment you….that was pretty cool. Although I shouldn't be surprised, since I had already known how powerful you would be since the day you were born." He said. Sam started to get confused. 

"You knew that I existed? Isn't that kind of bad….?" She asked, nervous. 

"Nope. All good, kid. I'm a special kind of Elder….you can call me the more powerful one. I'm the one who can actually see the real future and know what is meant to be. I knew you were coming years before you were even born. It was only when you were born that I found out how powerful you really were. But only I could though, none of them could. I keep my future references to myself." He said. "Let's just keep this between you and me."

Sam nodded in agreement, but still felt a little bit confused. Then again, she knew that she still had to get used to the world of magic thing first. "So you can see the future….?"

"Pretty much. But I still don't amount to your power…..if that was what you were thinking." 

"How powerful am I supposed to be?"

"Well….I can't really tell you. But….I can tell you that being more powerful than an Elder alone, is a lot. You have a lot of energy….and that can lead to many things. I have to admit, I don't even know what kind of powers you have yet, just I can sense all the positive energy in you that will lead into powerful abilities, like you freezing times and exploding things." Kevin said, like it was a normal conversation. 

"Oh. Wow." Sam said, not knowing what to say. Kevin sensed her confusion and uneasiness and smiled.

"I know it seems really weird at first, since you were just introduced to magic a few hours ago....but I'll tell you, that all you're going through right now pays off. You alone are going to be the most powerful force of good that has ever existed, and you will do such great things with yourself. You'll help so many people and you will be the one to bring the balance of good and evil in good's favor." he said. 

Sam felt unsure and pressured. "You know everyone's waiting for me to be some big powerful witch. What if I can't do it? What if you read your cards wrong? What if I just don't have the power...."

"Of course you do kid. Why do you think this demon is after you?"

"Because he's nuts. That's why. I don't understand  I'm just a normal kid. It's impossible that I'm meant to be this prodigy that saves the world from evil    I'm fourteen, and I'm a sophomore in high school....so what if I can freeze time and make things explode and make things appear when I think about them.....and maybe I even have more powers  It just doesn't make me this big warrior that you all are expecting. I'm just not the one."

"Sam, why do you think that in the past you've had the weird de ja vu vibes? The sudden sense that something bad is going to happen? The little urges you've had to help people?? Those just aren't little feelings that you get from the air. They are part of you....they are your proof that you are meant to be a warrior for the people. The fighter of good against evil. And if you still don't believe me now....if you don't even believe in yourself, then destiny always has it's own way of showing it's path for you." 

"You know what? If I was so damn powerful, why couldn't I save my aunt and uncle huh? Why'd they have to DIE? Why couldn't I save them from dying????" she asked, now angry. She felt tears fall down her cheeks unwillingly, and turned around to wipe her face so Kevin wouldn't see.

Kevin took a deep breath before talking again. "Sam.....your aunt and uncle were great people. I knew them, and I loved them a lot....I really did and I know that they loved you just as much. Even if you had your powers before they were attacked, you couldn't change destiny. That's how they were meant to die....and they were meant to die protecting you. I know you've heard this already from Paige...but I think you should hear it again." 

Sam finished wiping her tears and didn't want to talk. She sat in silence. "That darklighter that attacked them....you know he stole their powers, which means he stole their souls. You can still save your aunt and uncle. If you defeat the demon that's after you, then you release their souls, and they can move on in peace. That's up to you to do. It's not for your parents, or your aunts, even if they are the charmed ones. This job was only made for you....and only you can bring them peace." Kevin said, with a little bit of seriousness in his tone.

Sam looked up at Kevin, with a little disbelief. "What if I can't do it? What if I'm not powerful enough?"  She whispered. 

Kevin chuckled, and sighed as if he were a little frustrated. "You know.....I think you need a little confidence in you. I think I just might be able to help with that..." he said. Kevin put both his hands on Sam's shoulders and closed his eyes. Sam watched in awe as Kevin started to glow with light and the light started to flow from him into Sam. Sam jumped a little, startled by the sudden light flowing into her and at the same time she started to feel a boost of power. 

After a few seconds, Kevin stopped. "Feel better?" he asked. 

"What did you do to me?" Sam asked, once AGAIN confused.

"I told you, kid. I gave you a boost of confidence." 

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Do you feel better?" he asked again. Sam paused to think and felt a new kind of energy in her, that made her feel that she could do anything.

"Err....actually I do. That's really weird....." she said. Kevin grinned and laughed. "One of my specialty powers. Now that you have confidence....promise me that you will now, try to face the demon?" 

Sam shrugged. "Sure, why not." she said, with a small smile. Kevin smiled and put his hand on her shoulder. 

"Never....be afraid to release the power you have inside there. It's in you....never be afraid to claim it yours." he said, now a little serious. Sam nodded with her new confidence. 

 She was about to get up, but felt a cold chill go up her spine. It was pretty strong and made her fall back down sitting on her step. She held her chest, with a huge bad feeling crowding inside of her. Kevin looked as if he wasn't surprised at all. 

"Ah….something bad….is going to happen." She whispered, as she felt it all. "Someone's….coming…."

Kevin nodded his head. "Yep. I know. Stay true to your promise, kid." 

AS if on cue, the glass of the front door shattered. Sam screamed and covered her head as the glass shattered everywhere across the floor. The door flew open and in came a tall, middle aged bald Caucasian guy with bright glowing red eyes, otherwise known as Arkon. He turned towards Sam and smiled, then noticed Kevin standing near him, not moving.

"An Elder…." Arkon hissed. "Hmm….more power." 

Arkon held out his hand and started to shoot electricity towards Kevin, but Sam shot out her hands in panic to freeze only the electricity bolt in mid air. She shot out her hands at Arkon, hoping he would explode, but Arkon only deflected the explosion with a flick of his hand. He looked angry, and headed towards Sam. Sam started to panic, and kept shooting her hands out like before, but Arkon kept catching her power. 

He was about to grab his arms around Sam, when Sam closed her eyes and orbed behind him. Arkon tried to grab thin air but then realized she disappeared. He was about to try and grab her again when Piper, Paige, Phoebe and Leo ran out to the foyer to see the shattered glass on the floor and Arkon in the room. 

"Sam  Watch out " Phoebe exclaimed. She levitated up to Arkon and kicked him hard in his face. Arkon flew because of the blow and crashed into the cabinet near by. It only slowed him down for so long. He quickly stood up from all the shattered glass and splintered wood, and had his eye on Sam and Kevin. Kevin stood still in his position, not moving.

"Kevin  Get out of here  You're gonna get hurt " Sam exclaimed. Kevin kept a straight face and acted as if he didn't hear her. He stood still as if he were waiting to get hurt. Arkon smiled and targeted the Elder. He shot out a thunderbolt from his left hand aiming for Kevin but Sam froze it in mid air again. Arkon shot another thunderbolt from his right hand, but Sam exploded it just in time. 

Arkon grew frustrated with Sam and shot a quick energy ball towards her. Sam was too slow and was hit by the energy ball. She flew into the wall, crashing down into the floor. Sam wasn't hurt , but as soon as Sam was hit, Arkon shot a final thunderbolt towards Kevin and Kevin exploded into bright light. 

"NO " Sam exclaimed as she saw Kevin disappear into little shimmering lights. Arkon knew that the lights indicated Kevin's power and ran towards it. Piper tried to explode him, but Arkon only blocked it with his hand. He jumped up and flipped towards the light and it absorbed right into him as he flipped through it. He landed on his feet and smiled, feeling the new power inside of him. Then, he eyed Sam. 

"Witch....your power will be mine...." he hissed. "DARKLIGHTERS " 

Leo, Paige, Phoebe and Piper paused, only to see about 10 darklighters orb all around them with crossbows in their hands. Arkon grinned. "FIRE " he screamed. Sam gasped. 

"NO " she screamed as ran towards Piper, Leo, Phoebe and Paige. As the darklighter pulled their triggers, a bunch of arrows came towards them, but as Sam jumped into Piper's arms, a large blue forcefield covered all five of them and the arrows were useless to enter. There was an awkward silence as Sam's forcefield still held up. Piper, Leo, Phoebe and Paige looked up at the forcefield in awe as well as the other darklighters and Arkon. 

Arkon glared at the forcefield, and smiled. "So much power...." he whispered. "DARKLIGHTERS  FIRE AGAIN " 

The darklighters glanced at each other, knowing it was useless but followed their orders. They pulled their triggers of their crossbows and arrows started coming in towards the five. Sam closed her eyes as she held the forcefield and once the arrows hit her forcefield, she used more power to make it solid and instead of the arrows disintegrating into the forcefield, the arrows bounced off and hit about half the darklighters that had orbed in. 

Screams were heard as there were black puffs of smoke all around. Some of the darklighters ducked just in time and still lived.  Sam glanced to Paige, Piper and Phoebe. "Now, would be the time to do something?" she suggested. Phoebe turned to Paige.

"Paige, once Sam puts her....blue thingy down, call for the remaining darklighters' crossbows. Then, Piper and I will use them to kill the others." Phoebe said. Paige nodded and signaled Sam to stop the protection. Sam nodded but stopped in her tracks. She turned to back to the sisters. 

"How do I turn it off? I don't even know how this thing went up " she exclaimed, with a confused look on her face. Paige and Phoebe glanced over to Piper and Leo, as if they knew how. "Well?" they asked. Piper and Leo glanced at each other. 

"Um....." Piper trailed off, trying to think. Leo thought for a moment but then got an idea.

"This power, is a power of protection. Protection powers usually only react when the person who has the power is feeling a huge surge of danger. Just control your emotion and act like there's no demons here, so that the protection will come down." he said. Sam gave an uneasy glance to Leo but then shrugged and closed her eyes. 

In a matter of seconds, the dome of protection disappeared. Paige held her hands out and called the crossbow's names loudly. The remaining darklighters were in shock as they realized their crossbows were dematerializing right out of their hands. The shiny orbs headed towards Paige's hands and she set them on the floor where they materialized back into crossbows. Piper and Phoebe took the crossbows and started shooting the arrows at the darklighters. They didn't miss their targets and soon only two darklighters remained standing. 

They expected the darklighters and Arkon to throw another attack, but instead their glance was somewhere else. Sam gasped when she realized where they were looking. The darklighters started to orb out while Arkon started to point towards the sunroom. 

"Mom, Dad  They're heading for the other Elders " Sam said, pointing towards the sunroom. Piper and Leo nodded but then looked at each other a little funny. 

"Did you just call us...." Piper started, but a cry from one of the Elders was heard and she didn't get to finish. Sam started to blush while Piper and Leo ran towards the Elders. Paige and Phoebe kept the focus on Arkon. Paige grabbed Sam's shoulders and pushed her behind her. 

"Stay behind me." she grunted, still facing Arkon. Arkon clenched his teeth at the sight of Paige and Phoebe, knowing they were about to attack him. Phoebe ran up to him, and levitated to kick him in the face. Unfortunately, Arkon ducked and grabbed Phoebe's leg, swinging her into the wall. Arkon developed an energy ball in her hand and threw it towards an unconscious Phoebe, but Paige orbed it away just in time so it hit something else.

Arkon turned towards Paige. "Witch....WHERE'S MY CRYSTAL " 

"None of YOUR business " Paige screamed back. Arkon conjured an energy ball and threw it at Paige, but Paige caught it with her power, and orbed it back into Arkon's chest. Arkon flew into a wall, and was injured a little. 

Meanwhile, Piper and Leo ran into the sunroom in a huge panic. They found that the darklighters had just orbed in and were aiming for the Elders. The Elders were trying to escape but didn't know where to go. Before the darklighters could shoot at their targets, Piper blew one of the darklighters up. One arrow did escape towards the Elder, Maximus, but Leo jumped in front of it and pushed Maximus to the floor just in time. 

Piper took a broom nearby and wacked it at the darklighter's head and he dropped his crossbow. Piper looked back at Leo and the other startled Elders. "ORB THEM BACK UP " she screamed. Leo nodded and gathered all the Elders together before disappearing into shiny bright lights. Piper looked back where the darklighter was, but couldn't find him. 

It turned out the darklighter managed to get behind her, then punched her in the head. Piper fell to the floor and the crossbow slid across the room. Piper turned around on her back and shot her hands out to explode the darklighter, but he moved away just in time. She got up quickly and she and the darklighter circled around each other, waiting for someone to make a move.

The darklighter decided that it was his turn, and he charged toward Piper with another punch. Piper blocked it and kicked the darklighter in the head. She crouched down and swept kicked him off his feet. She then ran across the room to the crossbow and shot the arrow right into the darklighter's chest. The darklighter shrieked before it burst into flames and disappeared into dark scorch marks on the floor. 

Piper took a breath before running back into the foyer where Paige, Phoebe, and Sam were. As she ran in, she found Phoebe unconscious laying upon a pile of broken wood where a huge dresser used to be. Sam stood near Paige as the demon was just getting up from being hurt. Before Piper could jump in to help, Arkon quickly made his move. 

  


He quickly stood up and threw another energy ball towards Paige. As Paige stood and blocked the hurling blue energy ball, Arkon threw another one quicker than the first, one that Paige couldn't miss. The energy ball hit Paige with such force and she was knocked unconscious on the floor, with blood wounds all over her head.                                                                                             

Piper gasped and ran over to Paige, while Sam started to do the same. In a flash, Arkon went and grabbed Sam from behind her back and held an energy ball to her head. 

"No!" Piper gasped, turning away from Paige. She held her palms at Arkon and made a nasty look. "You let her go RIGHT now, or I'll blow your ass to pieces." 

"You do, and I'll blow her head to pieces before you even get to touch me." Arkon returned.

A sudden chill went through Piper, and she felt helpless as she saw her daughter being held captive in the arms of the demon with an energy ball at her head. She looked into Sam's eyes and saw total fear, and a call for help. Piper was so scared, that she couldn't move. 

"Sam..." she whispered. 

"If you want her alive, then RETURN MY CRYSTAL!" Arkon spat angrily. He then shimmered out of the room with Sam still crying for help in his arms.


	17. Bargain for Powers

**A/N:** Another long period has past by where I haven't updated, and once again I apologize! THANKS SO MUCH to the people who have still been reading. Your reviews help me through school and they help me write another chapter to this fic. I'm so sorry for the long waiting periods for my chapters. I'm forced to make school my first priority.....and because my stupid high school is a "college prep" high school, I'm getting piled down with a bunch of HARD college work in my classes.

But school shmool! I finally got around to finishing this chapter. Thank you EVERYONE for reading.....please bare with me!!

Once again, please review, and thank you!!!

**Separation-_ Chapter 17_**

As she watched Arkon shimmer out of the room, Piper froze with fear.

"Oh my god." she whispered. She quickly came back to reality and remembered her injured sisters.

"LEO!" she screamed with all her might. About five seconds later, blue orbs settled into the foyer of the manor right in front of Piper. Leo didn't even have to speak before he ran to Phoebe and Paige to heal them. It was only a matter of minutes until they both were fully healed. Piper still stayed silent, not sure how to cope with all of her fear.

Phoebe and Paige started to come to, and Leo ran over to Piper.

"Piper....what happened to Sam." he asked her, with a stern voice. At first, Piper couldn't find her voice. Instead tears started to slip down her face and she collapsed into Leo's arms.

"Leo, they took her. That bastard took my daughter." she cried. Leo's face suddenly went pale and he too had a cold shiver sent up his spine.

"Wait, he took her....?" Leo asked. Piper nodded, but the more she thought about it, the more she had to cry. She had to admit that she had never felt anything like it before, worrying for the safety of her daughter. It was a new feeling to both her and Leo.

Paige stood up and felt a bit dizzy from her injury, but was used to it, since she always felt the same after she was healed. After she finished recovering she looked up to see Piper and Leo hugging in grief. She could see by Piper's tears that something was wrong.

"Where's Sam?" she asked. When Leo and Piper couldn't bare to answer her, she knew something was wrong.

"They didn't....oh geez...." Paige muttered, trailing off into her own thoughts. Phoebe had just finished recovering from her injury and had just noticed the bad news. She turned to Paige. "We have to do something....now."

Paige nodded in agreement but still wasn't sure what to do. She took another glance at Piper and Leo, but they were still getting over the fact that she was kidnapped. Paige went up to the two. "You guys.....if we want to get Sam back, then we have to start now. I don't think she'll be hurt....we've seen what she can do when she's in need of protection. That big blue thingy, was not what we all expected."

Piper wiped up her tears, but Leo's face still looked extremely pale. "What are we going to do...." Piper said, her voice still weary.

"We'll find her." Phoebe said.

"How.....it said nothing in the book that said anything about his location....he's an upper level demon...." Piper kept going.

"We'll find a way." Paige said.

Piper paused, and Paige and Phoebe could tell that she feeling pessimistic. Leo put his hands on her shoulders, and looked her sternly in the eye. "There's always a way." he said calmly, then glanced to Phoebe and Paige. "We'll find it....we have to."

"Maybe we can scry for her?" Phoebe suggested.

"Scry for what though? We don't have anything of hers we can scry with." Paige said. Phoebe knew Paige was right and put the idea aside. "Well....what else are we going to do?" Phoebe said, getting frustrated.

"Let's just get to the book. We have to find something, fast." Paige said, dragging Phoebe up the stairs to the attic. Piper and Leo were left downstairs in the foyer in silence. Around them, the house was a mess. Practically everything was thrashed, including the front door, and spread across the floor were bits of broken wood and glass. Leftover darklighter arrows were either pinned on the wall or left on the floor.

"I'm so scared, Leo. I'm just so scared right now...." Piper whispered, looking at the mess around her. Leo took a look at Piper, and saw her hurt expression. He extended his arms out and slowly took her into his arms. "I know. Me too...." he whispered, as he held her tight.

Piper once again started to weep. Leo, too, felt worried for his daughter, and was partly mad at himself for not being there to protect her. He kissed Piper on the forehead.

"Come on.....we have to stay strong." he said. Piper looked up at Leo, her face still white with terror as the picture of Arkon with a grip on Sam stayed with her mentally. Leo lightly touched her cheek. "Don't worry. I won't stop until she's safe." he whispered.

He then wrapped his arms around her again, and orbed up to the attic. The first thing the both of them caught sight of, was Paige over the huge map of the city, trying to scry for Sam with a crystal. Phoebe was flipping through the Book of Shadows vigorously, knowing she had to hurry if they were to save Sam.

Paige looked up from her scrying. She eyed Piper and Leo closely. "Are you two going to be alright?" she asked. Piper and Leo nodded, and Piper sniffled, trying to rid of her tears.

"Any ideas on what to do?" Leo asked.

Paige shrugged and dropped the crystal. "I'm not getting anywhere with this scrying. The crystal barely knows what it's scrying for. I have nothing of hers that would get a clear read on her."

"Phoebe?"

"Nothing. In the entry about Arkon, it says nothing about where his 'hang-out' is or where he does his dirty business. I was thinking maybe we could do the 'call a lost witch' spell, but the spell won't exactly lead us to where she is, and she's not ALL witch. She's mostly whitelighter." Phoebe said, closing the Book of Shadows, a little frustrated.

There was a beat of silence, until Piper let out a pondering sigh. Leo, Phoebe and Paige turned towards Piper. "Piper, do you have an idea?"

Piper paused for a minute, and then spoke. "I was just wondering.....maybe we do have something of Sam's to scry with." she said.

"Like what?" Paige asked, not following what she was saying.

"Well...it's not exactly materialistic......it's more like genetic."

"Umm....okaaay...." Phoebe said, trying to catch onto her plan.

"She IS mine and Leo's daughter. Can't we just, combine something of both of ours and use that to scry for her?"

"Like a drop of blood." Leo said.

Piper smiled. "Exactly."

Phoebe shrugged. "I don't see why we shouldn't give that a try...."

Paige nodded. "It just might work."

Piper and Leo then walked up to the table where the scrying crystal and map was. Paige handed Leo a small dagger to poke his finger with. He made a tiny cut onto his index finger and squeezed the end of his finger to let a drop of his blood fall onto the crystal. Puffs of smoke started to rise from the crystal, as if it was burning. Shortly after Leo donated his drop of blood, Piper did the same, so that her drop of blood fell right on top of Leo's to mix.

Paige waited a minute before picking up the crystal. She then held it up a good height over the map and started to twirl the crystal, waiting for it to take a mind of its own and point to a place on the map. Phoebe, Leo and Piper waited patiently for the crystal to choose a place.

* * *

Sam opened her eyes to see herself in front of an old abandoned warehouse, still in the harsh clutches of the demon that kidnaped her from the manor. Arkon had her in a headlock, and was holding her very tightly.

"Let go of me, you sick FREAK!" she said, trying to project her voice as being angry and threatening. Arkon only laughed at her braveness.

"Shut up. You won't have anything to whine about once I'm done with you." he said, coldly. He dragged her through the entrance of the dark warehouse. There was barely any light, but it was bright enough to see that the inside of the warehouse was like a huge dungeon. There were cages and chains everywhere, with bars on all of the windows. It seemed hopeless to try and escape from the place.

Sam could see darklighters everywhere. There were darklighters guarding the door, darklighters fixing their weapons, darklighters polishing up the cages, darklighters shooting target practice, and darklighters sitting around playing cards.

Darklighters started to walk up to Arkon, asking him if he wanted anything, and if there was anything they could do for him. Arkon only pushed them away. It was as if Arkon were a general or a businessman of some sort with all these little darklighters to act as assistants.

As Arkon dragged Sam along, darklighters began to stop what they were doing and started to stare at Sam, wondering what kind of business Arkon had going on with a mere and tiny little girl. Arkon continued walking until they ended up in another room. Sam could see that it was an office, and assumed it was Arkon's.

Arkon let go of Sam's head for a second, only to shove her into the hands of two other darklighters. The two darklighters held Sam by her wrists, and pulled her against the wall, only to lock her wrists into chains. Sam struggled to escape, but the chains were held too tight on her wrists. Arkon waved his hand to signal for the darklighters to leave the office.

As the darklighters left the room, Sam still continued her attempt to escape. Arkon chuckled a bit.

"You're not going to get anywhere." said Arkon, walking towards Sam.

"What do you want from me?? I don't have anything valuable!"

"Are you kidding me?? I thought you already had that talk with someone else......." Arkon said, his voice raising. "Of course you're valuable you little brat. Weren't you already told that you're one of the most powerful beings in the universe??? Everybody wants to get their dirty hands on you......but I got to you first." he said, smiling.

Sam knew he was right, and didn't know what to do. She closed her eyes and tried so hard to orb, but nothing would work. She still didn't know how to trigger any of her powers yet. When they happened, they just.....happened. She finally stopped struggling, and had a look of defeat on her face. Arkon noticed and kept on chuckling.

"Oh.....what's wrong with the teenage witch. Sad?? Frustrated??? No Mommy or Daddy to save you here....???" he said, feeding on her sadness. Sam glared at the demon, and couldn't stand his smart aleck confident expression.

"Screw you. I won't let you get away with this. YOU KILLED MY AUNT AND UNCLE. You stole their SOULS. You sick bastard.......I'll murder you before you do anything else." she screamed, filled with anger. Tears slipped down her cheek from all the hatred she felt.

"Sam, Sam, Sam, Sam........you underestimate me. Just because I am a demon, does NOT mean I am not willing to make a little proposition for you. I'm a businessman on the side, and I never hesitate to make a fair trade for the things I want......" he said, coming closer to Sam. Sam kept a strong glare towards him.

"What are you talking about?"

Arkon smiled and started to pace around the room. "Sam......when my darklighter stole your whitelighters' souls.....he stole it with a little special crystal. So, your whitelighters' souls are sitting in that crystal. But I never got that crystal back. The charmed one who saved you from your house stole it from me......and now it's in their possession. Help me get that crystal back.....and I'll let your aunt and uncle's souls go up in peace."

"Do you really think I'm that stupid?!?! You're a demon.....I know you're just lying to me so you can get your stupid crystal. I may be new to this magic stuff, but I still know a liar when I see one."

Arkon laughed and Sam became so annoyed with his cockiness. "Demons may be deceiving. But I'll tell you something.....demons NEVER fail to keep their end of the bargain when they really want something. It's a known fact. I want that crystal.....and I'm willing to sacrifice a few things to get it back." he said.

"I'll never help you. I'll never betray Piper, Leo, Paige and Phoebe. They're my friends....."

"Oh come on, you don't even know them!! Your parents gave you away when you were little. They didn't want you. They still don't want you!! You have NOTHING to gain by helping THEM. I thought it was your aunt and uncle you loved. You can set them free Sam."

"There's nothing you can say that'll make me help you. I'll never help your kind.....you evil BASTARD." Sam said, spitting at his feet. Arkon rolled his eyes and sighed.

"I knew there was going to be some kind of challenge. You've got all the stubbornness of a regular goody-goody witch. Well.....I have ways of making you help me. Or you can say.....I have something that you may want to save in exchange for your power."

"What do you mean?? What are you talking about?" Sam asked, now confused. Arkon laughed and snapped his fingers. Suddenly, Sam saw a darkligher's black orbs form in the room. The darklighter was holding an unconscious person over his shoulder, and dumped him down on the floor. Sam gasped as she saw who the body was.

"Arnold!!!!" Sam screamed as she saw Arnold unconscious on the ground. He started to move a little, and was starting to regain his consciousness.

"We found this one running home after you and your friends escaped from the night club. I thought he would be of SOME use to me......." Arkon said. Arnold started to groan a little, and he opened his eyes. He started to sit up and look around.

"Where......where the heck am I?? Sam??" Arnold said, confused about his surroundings. He finally caught sight of Sam.

"Sam!!" he exclaimed, weakly. "You're okay......they told me that they were going to hurt you...."

Sam wanted to run over to help Arnold up, but she was still chained to the wall. "Arnold.....I'm so sorry. I'll get you out of here.....I promise!!!!" she told him. Arkon snapped his fingers to signal the darklighter. The darklighter walked over to Arnold and held his head by his hair. Arnold struggled to break free, but the darklighter held his neck to choke him a little. Sam's courage withered away, and she couldn't bare to see Arnold getting hurt on her behalf.

"STOP! LET HIM GO!!! STOP HURTING HIM!!! HE HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS!!" Sam desperately cried.

"Oh but he does, dear." Arkon said, forming a fireball in his hand. "If you don't agree to help me, this fireball's going straight to his chest, and your boyfriend will be no more."

Sam panicked as she saw Arkon aiming the fireball at Arnold. Arnold's eyes widened as he saw the fireball. "How'd he do that??!? What the hell is that!!!!" he screamed, but the darklighter held him still. Sam didn't know what to do. She stared blankly at the fireball, and knew that there was nothing she could do to stop Arkon. Tears that brimmed her eyes slowly started to fall.

"STOP! I'll help you.....FINE! I'll help you!!!" she screamed. Arkon's smile spread across his face and the fireball disappeared from his palm. Sam closed her eyes and couldn't believe she had just made a deal with the demon, but knew that it was the only thing to do to save Arnold. She didn't want another person dead because of her.

The darklighter kept Arnold in a headlock, and Arnold was too weak to break free. "Get off of me you freakish thing....." he said, struggling. Arnold saw Arkon walk over to Sam, who was still chained to the wall.

"Don't you dare hurt Sam! I'll RIP you to PIECES!" he screamed. The darklighter covered his mouth so he would shut up. Arkon walked over to Sam so that he was only a few inches away from her.

"What do you want me to do??" Sam exclaimed, feeling guilt and shame.

"You don't need to do anything except let me take your power. I can't use your power unless you control your emotion to be less defensive. Then I'll have the power to go over to your precious Halliwells and get my crystal back."

Sam's eyes widened. "You can't hurt them. DON'T YOU DARE HURT THEM!" she screamed. Arkon's eyes grew dark, and formed an electric energy ball on the base of his palm. In a span of two seconds, he threw it towards Arnold. The energy ball grazed the side of his abdomen, and Arnold had a huge flesh wound.

"Ahhhhh....." Arnold gasped from the pain.

"NO!" Sam screamed. Arkon grabbed her neck and squeezed it tight so that Sam would choke. "The only way for you to save him is to give me your power." he said, viciously. Sam's tears fell down her cheeks and she had no choice but to try and control her emotion.

Arkon squeezed a little tighter, and soon a stream of bright light that signaled Sam's power, started to flow from Sam into Arkon's body. Arkon felt the enormous amounts of power flow into his system, and he couldn't believe how powerful the girl was. He sucked the power out of her for a few minutes until he could take in no more.

He knew that he didn't take ALL of her power. There was just too much for him to take in, but he had enough to reach his maximum level. He let go of her neck, and left Sam feeling extremely weak. Her skin color had turned a shade paler than before, and she felt drained out.

"So much power....." Arkon said, closing his eyes and harnessing it all down. To test it out, he shot his hands out at the wall, and a huge powerful beam demolished the wall in a few seconds. The darklighter who was keeping Arnold under control was astonished by how much power Arkon actually had. Arnold was too in pain from his wound to notice. Sam was just too weak.

"This is incredible....." Arkon whispered.

"My lord. What do we do with the girl and the boy?" the darklighter spoke up. Arnold was on the floor, almost unconscious by the huge amount of blood loss, and Sam felt like she didn't have the strength to move.

"There's no use for the boy anymore. Eliminate him." he muttered. "I'm going to get my hands on the Charmed Ones......."

Sam's head jerked up at Arkon's comment. "NO!" she screamed. Sam found energy inside of herself, and hoped that there was still some power inside of her. She used her emotion to orb out of the chains. When she realized that she was out, she ran as fast as she could to Arnold. When she got to him, she quickly held his hand, and orbed the both of them out of the warehouse.

The darklighter was about to chase after them, but Arkon raised his hand to stop him from doing so. "My liege.....shouldn't we go after them?" he asked.

Arkon shook his head. "We don't need them anymore.....the girl doesn't have enough power to heal the boy fully. They will cause no flaw in my plan....." he said.

"What about the charmed ones sir.....?" the darklighter asked.

"The Charmed Ones are falling into my trap. By now.....those witches have found where she is, or where she was anyway......" Arkon said, with a devious smile on his face. "They will come here, looking for Sam with that whitelighter, and when that happens......" Arkon made a "pulling the trigger" gesture with his hands.

"But......how are you sure that they will come here?"

"Because......I have a spy." Arkon said. He snapped his fingers, and a familiar face formed in the room in bright blue orbs.

"You rang....?"

"Patrick.....my good friend." Arkon said, greeting the whitelighter. Patrick smiled deviously. The darklighter, however, was shocked to see him.

"Whitelighter!" he cried. His crossbow suddenly appeared in his hand as an automatic reaction to kill the whitelighter. He aimed it towards Patrick until Arkon used his powers to knock the crossbow out of the darklighter's hands.

"Relax. I'm on your side, you idiot." Patrick muttered. The darklighter didn't seem convinced, but looked to Arkon and Arkon nodded to confirm. The darklighter grew confused, but decided not to touch the subject.

"Everything's going well......those witches are so predictable. They used the scrying board with Leo and Piper's blood to scry for Sam, just like I predicted they would. I manipulated the scrying board so that it wouldn't track her down and it would lead to right here." he said.

Arkon smiled. "Excellent......that was nice touch to bring the Elders down to the manor. That Elder's power will come in full use to me."

Patrick smirked, obviously cocky. "Don't worry. They don't suspect a thing."

"Now.....all we have to do.....is wait."

* * *

Sam found Arnold and herself lying on the grass of a park nearby her house. She originally planned for them to be orbed to her old house, but there wasn't enough power in her to orb the two of them all the way there. It was dark except for a few streetlights, and it was late so there was no one in sight. Sam still looked around in case someone followed her.

"Unhhh....." Arnold groaned, his hands soaked in crimson blood. Sam panicked as she saw Arnold hurt. She laid him down on his back and supported his head. She took a deep breath as she tried to concentrate. She remembered Leo talking about how emotions controlled her power. She knew she still had power left because she was able to orb, so that meant she still had some power left to heal.

"Okay it. Let it flow...." she whispered to herself. She held her hands over Arnold's wound on the side of his stomach and closed her eyes to concentrate. To her surprise, a bright light began to shine from her hands.

"Yes.....work.....please work...." she whispered. The blood all over Arnold's shirt started to disappear and Arnold's wound was slowly starting to heal. But before she knew it, Sam felt dizzy, and had to stop before Arnold was full healed. The cut was still visible, but it wasn't as bad anymore. Sam felt as if she had absolutely NO MORE strength left inside.

"No....." she muttered. She tried again, but after a few minutes of silence, she knew that she didn't have enough energy to harness her powers. She sighed and felt helpless to help Arnold. Arnold opened his eyes a little and saw Sam tearing.

"How.....how did you do that?" he said, his voice quiet. "Ow...."

Sam was startled, and thought that Arnold was unconscious. "ARNOLD! You're okay.....I'm so sorry...." she said, in between sniffling.

"I don't really know what happened.....but I guess my cut still hurts a lot.....Where did those guys go?!? Are you hurt???" he asked, trying to sit up, but struggled because of his weakness.

"They're gone......I'm sorry for dragging you into this. I wish I could heal you....." she whispered. Arnold looked baffled, and Sam didn't know how to explain everything.

"I'm just glad you're okay, Sam. When they said that they were going to hurt you.....man, I was just scared....." Arnold said, still showing signs of pain. Sam smiled and held his hand. "I promise.....I'll get someone to heal you." she said. She kissed him lightly on the cheek.

As she kissed him on the cheek, Arnold lifted his hand to pull Sam in to kiss his lips. Sam was surprised, but held her kiss with Arnold. For a minute, she forgot all about her situation and about magic, to experience her first kiss. As they let go, there was silence, but Sam and Arnold kept holding hands.

"Wait.....I know someone who can help us." she said, suddenly remembering about her family. She didn't have the strength to orb, but she did know who to call.

"PRUE!!!! HELP!!!"

_**To be continued......Stay tuned for Chapter 18 of "Separation".** _

**A/N:** OMG.....thanks you guys so much for keeping up with me. I love you all.....thanks for ALL the reviews. There's only a few chapters left to write. I PROMISE....PROMISE....GIVE YOU MY WORD.....that the next chapter will come within the next month. If I don't keep to my promise....give me NOTHING BUT FLAMES!


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